Pokemon:Rise of Evil
by RWBYSanctum
Summary: Team Rocket has taken over. Millions of lives have been lost, and regions fall. Ash Ketchum, one of the few people who can stop Team Rocket, has gone underground, as leader of the Kalosian rebel cell. When the time for combat comes, who will prevail? Amourshipping, Fourthwheelshipping.
1. Arc 1: Prologue

**Hey guys! I know I haven't written a story for a loooong time, so here's one to compensate for all that. Being my first Pokemon fanfic, and having not watched or played Pokemon since D/P/PL, I hope you can forgive me if I make mistakes.**

 **Anyway, this story is a action piece. It's split into three arcs, title Beginnings, Counter and Assault. This is the Prologue to Beginnings. Hope you enjoy, and please leave a review! Constructive criticism is encouraged.**

 **Anyway, here's the first part of Pokemon: Rise of Evil!**

 **BTW, all main characters except Max and Bonnie, who are 15, are all 18 years old. Screw the anime.**

Chapter 1

To say that I am going through emotional turmoil is an understatement. There isn't an apt way for me to adequately describe how I feel at the moment. I don't know whether to feel sad, angry, thankful, or anything. My brain cannot—will not—accept what has happened, and it can't compute if what happened is good or bad.

I stare out in the distance, hoping to catch a glimpse of flying Pokemon. Trying to differentiate between the flocks of Fletchinder and Fearow flying, trying to catch that all-red one, and trying to see him for the last time. But no, all I see are flocks of bird-like Pokemon flying into the sunset, moving to pastures anew.

As the sun sets on another day, I can't help but really think, with the limited functionality of my brain, about how the day had gone so wrong so fast.

 _6 hours earlier…_

"Alright, Lumiose City!" Ash cheered as we saw the outer boundaries of the massive city. Bonnie, who had been asleep and was being carried by Ash, groggily woke up, and instantly became alert and excited as they neared her hometown.

"Yay, we're almost home!" She exclaimed happily. "Dedenne!" The Wire Mouse Pokemon residing in her pouch shared her enthusiasm.

It had been 2 weeks since Ash competed in the Kalos Pokemon League Tournament. After some intense competition and some really close calls, Ash made his way to the finals, where he faced the defending champion, Diantha. It had been intense, with a highly charged atmosphere as both trainers threw all they had at each other. Ultimately, it had come down to Ash's Pikachu against Diantha's Gardevior. With both Pokemon going at each other blow for blow, and with the field quaking with the sheer power of the attacks, it looked very tight, and the simplest slip-up could prove costly.

Thankfully, it was Diantha who made that mistake, creating an opening for Pikachu to launch a fully-charged Volt Tackle and landing a direct hit. With that, Ash claimed his first league title: Kalosian King.

Things were almost as smooth for me. With two Princess Keys under my belt, I would have made it as long as I won one of the remaining two Showcases. However, it seemed that my recent wins got me much publicity and popularity, and I swept through the remaining Showcases to be crowned Kalosian Queen. With Ash being crowned Kalosian King, Bonnie had begun mercilessly teasing me, implying that Ash and I should get together like real royalty.

If only telling Ash my feelings were so simple.

With Bonnie's teasing, and with both of us being crowned as Kalosian Royalty, it seemed like a no-brainer that Ash and I should have made a good couple. Bonnie and Clemont, who had finally seen and learnt about my feelings for Ash, constantly kept pressuring to tell Ash, to tell him how I feel. I've tried, but everytime something stops me. Everytime I try to tell him, I clam up, unable to tell him. Whether it is out of fear of rejection or simply the lack of bravery to tell him, I can't tell.

"Serena." I am woken from the confines of my mind by Clemont. It is then I notice that we are alone, outside the gates of Lumiose.

"Where's Ash and Bonnie?"

"They're already inside the city." He steps closer to me with a stern face. "Serena, you have to tell him."

I sigh. As I've said, I've been under constant pressure to confess to Ash. "Clemont, you know I've tried. I just can't…"

"NO!" Clemont suddenly yells, and his shift in character catches me off guard. Clemont realizes this, and softens his voice, "Serena, he has already cleared the Kalos League. There is nothing else for him to do but return home. Lumiose is the final port before he leaves for Kanto, and once he gets on that blimp home, you're not going to see him again. This is your last opportunity to tell him."

"Why is this any of your business?" Annoyance and irritation eat at me as I fold my arms and challenge him. "My relationship with Ash is my business." I don't mean to snap, but I've had enough of this.

Clemont sighs, "I just want you to be happy. As a friend, isn't it part of my job to help make my friends happy? You say you're happy just being crowned Kalosian Queen, yet I can see in your eyes that you're not completely satisfied. You're missing something, Serena." He opens the gate and walks into the city, leaving me with his parting words and my thoughts.

One thing I love about Lumiose: the markets. Sure, Vaniville had its own markets and fashion stores, but in Kalos, nothing beats the capital city. The four of us had agreed to go around the city for the afternoon, before meeting at Clemont's house for a goodbye dinner for Ash. Bonnie and I chose to go shopping, Bonnie hoping to get a good goodbye gift for Ash, I hoping to find some cute clothes, and to be with myself for a few hours.

 _Come on, Serena! Pull yourself together! It's Ash!_

 _I just can't. I don't want to ruin our friendship…_

 _You know him better. Even if he doesn't reciprocate, he will still be your friend._

 _It's awkward…_

"Excuse me?"

I awake from my thoughts for the second time today by an elderly storekeeper. "Yes?" I ask.

"Sorry, miss. It's just that you happen to have been staring at my wares for a while now, and they're not that attractive if you know what I mean." The storekeeper says, smiling at me.

I blush in embarrassment. "I'm really sorry for disturbing you. I just…have too many thoughts on my mind. I wasn't really paying attention." I wasn't really in the mood to talk, but the old man seemed so genial that I couldn't help it.

He chuckled softly. "Can I presume that you happen to be in a complicated situation? Perhaps with someone whom you are close to?"

I stumble briefly. "How…how did you guess?" I stutter out, my face turning red. Was I really so obvious?

"I've seen young people like you go through such scenarios. In fact, I myself went through this when I was younger." He explained kindly, before leaning in, "May I enquire as to your situation?"

Others might have seen this as an invasion of privacy, and probably would have left, but the old man had me engrossed. He genuinely seemed like he wanted to help. I gave him a summary of my problem, leaving out details like names.

"He's leaving for another region tomorrow, and I'm afraid I won't see him again for a long time, if not ever. I don't want to lose him, but I'm so afraid that I would jeopardize our relationship with him." I conclude.

"You would rather let him stay ignorant of your feelings if it means the two of you can never be more than friends?" There was no judgment in his voice, only gentle sadness.

I consider this for a while, before answering with a nod. The old man contemplates for a minute, before asking, "Say you do tell him, and he does not reciprocate your feelings. Would you resent him?"

There is no hesitation in my answer. "No. I won't. "He's travelled a lot, and I heard about some of his other 'companions'. He has no shortage of suitors, so perhaps he has feelings for a certain one. As long as he's happy being with her, I'm happy for him. I can understand if I'm not the right girl for him. I may not like it, but I won't hate him, because if he isn't happy being with me, then I'll do whatever it takes to make him happy"

"Which is why you ought to tell him your feelings immediately." The old man says with a smile. I am caught off guard by his quick response, and I blurt out, "What?"

"Young lady, just this short conversation tells me one thing: you have a good person. You have a sweet personality, you have striking good looks, and you are willing to step aside if necessary; in other words, you are the perfect girl for anyone. Any boy who can reject a sweet girl like you clearly does not deserve you. My suggestion is to admit your feelings to this boy. You have nothing to lose, for if he rejects you, then perhaps he isn't the perfect person for you. And if he reciprocates…"

I consider the old man's words, and realize that they made a lot of sense. I really didn't have anything to lose. And regardless, if Ash doesn't reciprocate, he's nice enough that he'll still keep me as a close friend. And frankly, I would rather that than be estranged from him.

"You're right, sir. Thank you." I bow in gratitude to him, and my eyes come across one of his wares. "How much would this be? I think it would make a good gift for him."

"For you, no charge." He says with a nonchalant wave of his hand. "Just promise me that you will tell him. You have a very good heart, Serena Yvonne."

I blush again at the compliment. "Thank you." Then his words strike me. "Wait, how do you know my name?"

The man chuckles, "I do believe that even in my old age, I can recognize the Kalosian Queen. And another reason for my advice: that Ash Ketchum fellow seems like a decent guy. I'm confident he won't reject you."

Speechless, I slap a 20 pokedollar note on his stall and race away from his stall, my face now a dark shade of red and my confidence at an all time high.

 _Clemont's house_

"Thanks, Clemont! You sure know how to make a good meal!" Ash compliments.

"Well, it's your last chance to taste Kalosian food and my cooking, so naturally I spared no expense and threw all my cooking expertise into preparing this!" Clemont says proudly.

"And again, you've outdone yourself." Ash says, before tucking into a slice of cake.

Clemont had spent the first part of the afternoon at the gym, ensuring that things were working and checking in as to how Lumiose was progressing economically and socially. Then he had come back to prepare, in his own words, "the greatest banquet in the history of Kalos and in the history of organized banquets."

And he didn't disappoint. It had started with an appetizer of a local Kalosian delicacy, Kreme Brulle, a type of pie made with a mixture of blended berries, sugar and milk. Then the main courses arrived, and the table had been filled with delicious dishes. Dessert was unlimited servings of Kalosian ice cream, apparently taken from the frosted breath of Vanilluxes, which for their seemingly weird appearance, could make really great ice cream. Clemont had to restrain Bonnie because she took one bite of the ice cream and went berserk, trying to spoon as much ice cream as possible. The scene was so adorable.

Once Bonnie had calmed down sufficiently and everyone had eaten their fill, Clemont stood up and gave a speech, thanking Ash for bringing the three of us on such an amazing journey. Bonnie thanked Ash by hugging him and Dedenne celebrated by shocking Ash. Then it was my turn. I stood up, nerves racing.

"Ash, I can't begin to describe how this entire journey has been, and how much it has influenced me. You were a major influence on me when I was young, and this long journey has really changed me more. Without your support, I wouldn't have been able to be crowned Kalosian Queen, let alone win one Showcase. When I was done, you were always there to comfort me, to encourage me to never give up, and to be the very best like no one ever was. I would say thank you, but I feel that those words are insufficient to describe this journey. How can two small words adequately bring out the significance of this journey? But since I can't find a synonym for thank you that can really bring out the extent to which I'm grateful for having joined you on this journey, I guess I'll just have to say thank you for everything."

The silence that permeated the room thereafter was eerie. Upon completion of my speech, no one moved for a minute.

Suddenly, there was a knock at the front door.

"I've got it! Bonnie, wanna come along?" Clemont quickly announced, before giving me a wink. I could have hugged him right there and then.

"OK!" Bonnie got up and followed Clemont out of the dining room, leaving me alone with Ash.

"Serena, I…I don't know what to say." Ash broke the silence between us first. "You know, you're a really great girl, Serena. I thoroughly enjoyed journeying through Kalos with you."

 _This is it, Serena. This is your chance._

I took a deep breath. "Thanks, Ash. Actually, there is something I want to tell you."

"Yes, Serena?"

Till today, I wonder. I wonder what would have happened if things hadn't transpired the way they did. Would it have changed anything?

Would I have been in this predicament? 

"Ash…" I hear Clemont call. I look up to glare at him, only to see his serious face on. Something's wrong.

"Ash…you have to see this." Clemont calls again. Ash hears the seriousness in his tone and gets up. "What's wrong?"

Clemont doesn't say a word, only turns on the television. He flicks through channels until he finds the news channels.

What I see makes me gasp in horror.

I see a city much like that of Lumiose, only bigger and filled to the brim with skyscrapers. Or at least, what's left of it. Smoke rises from destroyed buildings. Craters litter the pavement and walkways. I even catch a glimpse of bodies lying all around.

At first, I don't know which city was this, my first thought being what kind of twisted soul would something like this. Then my eyes fall on the tallest building in the city, a skyscraper that stands even taller than Prism Tower. An old memory rises to the surface; I had seen a similar building before, when I was younger.

Ash answers for me. "That…that's Saffron City. What happened to it?" His face is a mixture of shock and anger. On his shoulder, Pikachu glares at the TV screen, cheeks sparkling with anger manifesting in energy.

The newscaster speaks, "Reports are still streaming in as to this surprise attack on Saffron City in the Kanto region, in one of the worst terrorist attacks to ever hit the region. The death toll is reported to have reached nearly a thousand, and more than that number have suffered injuries. Yet this is not the only city to be attacked, as reports from Celadon, Viridian and Vermillion City have also been reported…"

Suddenly, the screen turns fuzzy, and after a few minutes of static, the image is replaced by that of a man standing in a dark room. He has a clean shaven look and wears a orange suit, with a Persian prowling around him. He begins to speak.

"People of the Pokemon World! I am Giovanni, leader of an international organization called Team Rocket. We have taken over command of the Kanto region, and as you have seen from the footage at Saffron City, we are not afraid of using force to get power. Our ultimatum is this: the leaders of the remaining 5 regions are to surrender to the command of Team Rocket. Your leaders must abdicate and all Pokemon must be handed over to Team Rocket. Do so within 48 hours, or suffer the consequences."

The screen fizzles, then reverts back to the news channel, who begins to report about the mysterious hacking. I'm barely listening any more, my mind unable to take the shock. Team Rocket? How could an organization that hires people like Jessie and James ever seize control of a region?

My mind suddenly recognizes the sound of someone running down stairs, and I turn to see Ash running out with his bag. Without thinking, I race out.

"Charizard, come on out!" He throws a Pokeball, and out pops a dragon-like Pokemon with fire spewing from its tail. He prepares to get on, but I quickly grab his hand.

"Ash, you're not seriously thinking on taking on Team Rocket, are you?" I ask worriedly. "These don't seem like the kind of people to mess with."

"I have to go, Serena! They attacked my home. They killed innocents, enslaved innocent Pokemon. Do you expect me to just stay here and not do anything about it?" He turns to me and exclaims.

"I'm trying to make sure you don't do something stupid that will get you killed!" I exclaim back. I'm not going to lose him, not right now. Not when everything was going so well. "Ash, these people took over Kanto, one of the toughest regions to beat. I'm not doubting your abilities, but do you really think you can take them on yourself?"

"What's the alternative? I stay here in Kalos and wait for Team Rocket to attack? I'm not letting them touch another region, Serena…especially Kalos. Besides, does it really matter now? I'm not letting them get away with this." He growls.

"I'm not going to let you do this, Ash. I get it, you want to get back at Team Rocket. But you're just one person taking on an entire organization! This isn't a rescue operation, this is a suicide mission!" I can't stop myself from yelling. I have to convince him to stop, even though I know he won't. I can't lose him, not here, not now. "Ash, please don't…"

It takes my brain half a minute to realize that my mouth was being covered by something, and another ten to realize that it's Ash's lips on mine. As my brain registers the shock of being kissed, and by ASH no less, he pulls away. His aggressive look softens.

"My Kalosian Queen, I will return. It may be a month, a year or a decade, but I will come back to Kalos. I will come back to you. I'm doing this because I know that if I don't stop this, Team Rocket won't stop. They'll keep coming, and eventually they'll reach Kalos. I can't stand them attacking this beautiful region." He pauses, then continues, "Or you."

And leaving my shell-shocked self staring in disbelief, he leaps onto Charizard, and the mighty dragon flies off into the sunset, leaving me staring as the boy I loved flew off into the sunset.

That night, I cry myself to sleep. I cry for the uncertainties of the future. I weep for how the day changed so rapidly.

But most of all, I cry for the love I lost.

 **HOLY SHIT! 3,146 words! I have never written so much for one chapter ever. Well, I thoroughly enjoyed writing this regardless. Hope you guys enjoyed, and please R and R!**


	2. Arc 1 Chapter 1: Siege

**What is up, beautiful people! Sorry I haven't updated in a while, but I had exams and then I was basically lazing around my house and going out with friends and playing Hearthstone…so yeah. Also, though I had the story idea—I knew where I wanted this chapter to go—I just had a lot of difficulty writing it. It's kinda like you're writing an argument where you have all your points but you just don't know how to write them properly.**

 **But anyways, THE WAIT IS OVER! Here is Chapter 1 (officially)!**

 **Oh, and just some things: All trainers except Bonnie, Max and Team Rocket Grunts are 18. Bonnie and Max are 15, while no one cares about Grunts, right?**

Chapter 1

"Reports are still streaming in about the attack and what it means for other regions…"

 _BZZT!_

"Today marks a truly dark day in the history of our world…"

 _BZZT!_

"Unova has fallen as well, leaving many asking, can anyone stop this menace?"

 _BZZT!_

"Nothing! Absolutely nothing we can do!" I glance up at the TV screen for the first time to see an old man being interviewed and yelling into the microphone.

"Listen to me, all you viewers at home! This is your punishment for treating Pokemon like slaves! This is what you all deserve: to be subjugated to another! You all brought this on yourselves!" The man screams as he is dragged away by two burly policemen, continuing to rant even as he is being dragged away kicking and screaming.

The TV fizzles out. "You shouldn't be watching this, Serena. It's too depressing." Clemont sits down next to me, the remote in his hand.

"It can't depress me any further than I already am." I reply emotionlessly as I stare at the floor.

Clemont cautiously lays a reassuring hand on my shoulder. I feel the urge to shrug him off, to tell him to leave me alone, but I don't do either, mainly because, as much as I didn't feel like talking, I just wanted the comfort of someone to talk to.

"Serena, he'll be back. ( **A/N: Try doing that in an Arnold voice. I dare you** **)** You know he will." Clemont tries to reassure me.

The thing is, I know this. I know that Ash will be back. The rational part of my brain knows this, and it keeps telling me this, telling me to stop acting like Bella Swan and pull myself together, telling me to just be patient and wait for him.

But love is irrational. It can be the thing that drives somebody insane with grief. In my case, part of it was due to overthinking the situation, while part of my depression came from my worrying that Ash wasn't going to make it back, that he would fail in his mission, that he could potentially…die.

And of course, there was the whole kiss thing. I realized that I was probably overthinking the situation, but I honestly didn't know what he meant by it. Did he kiss me because he loved me, or simply to shut me up so that he could fly off to Kanto? Why did he kiss me only then, if he really did love me?

All-in-all, the emotional state of my mind was not functioning at full capabilities. As much as I want to believe—scratch that, I'm confident—that Ash Ketchum would return as he promised, my many emotions and the turmoil I'm going through definitely messes up my brain.

"Serena? Serena?"

I suddenly realize that I had been too caught up in my own thoughts to notice Clemont had been talking to me. Bonnie had joined us too, dressed in her usual outfit, unlike Clemont, who was still in pyjamas.

"Sorry, I spaced out for a minute. What were you saying?" I asked.

Bonnie sighed. "I thought we already talked about this, Serena. You can't keep thinking about Ash! You're overthinking the situation!"

"Bonnie, she's under a lot of stress, ok? If your crush just left you, or didn't reciprocate, what would you do?" Clemont challenges her.

"I'm not saying she shouldn't mope around. I'm just saying that doing the whole Bella Swan thing for 2 weeks is a bit overdone! It's ridiculous!"

"Leave it, Clemont. Bonnie's right." I put a hand on Clemont's shoulder to calm him down before he erupted into a rage. "I…I just need to take a walk, take my mind off certain things."

"I'll go with you! What you need is a girl's day out!" Bonnie immediately sits up, full of cheer and excitement.

"No, Bonnie. Serena needs time to herself." Clemont chides her.

"And you need to stop treating me like I'm still 8!" I'm 15 now!" Bonnie yells back.

"Guys, please stop." I beg, before turning to Clemont. "Actually, I think Bonnie should follow. It'll be good to have some company with me."

Clemont looks to argue, before glancing at Bonnie, who somehow manages to look both like a volcano about to erupt and a firecracker that would bounce off the walls at any second.

*sigh* "Alright."

"YAY! Come on, Serena, let's go!" Bonnie says, before running up the stairs to grab her bag. -

"Come on, Serena!" Bonnie, who is a good hundred metres ahead of me, exclaims. We're racing each other to the Lumiose markets, which only opened a few minutes ago, but already have quite a crowd, according to Bonnie. How she knew all this is a mystery to me.

"I'm coming!" I yell back excitedly. This is actually the most amount of fun I've had in over 2 weeks. I feel like I'm free from my problems, or at least I don't feel so burdened by them. It feels good to breathe fresh Lumiose air again, and to feel the wind blowing my hair back…

WHAM!

In my excitement, I didn't see the girl in front of me, and I literally plowed into her. Both of us fell to the ground hard, me landing on top of her.

"Get off of me!" The girl pushes me off, before standing up and dusting herself off. "Are all you citizens this clumsy or short-sighted that you can't see where you're going?" She asks haughtily as she looks down on me. She's wearing a white dress and has white hair tied into two long ponytails at the sides.

I'm so mortified at having knocked into someone and at the same time miffed that this teen-sounding girl is so arrogant that I can't come up with an explanation or any coherent speech at first.

"Are you hearing-impaired? I'm talking to you."

At this point, my first thought is _I hate this girl._

Luckily, I'm saved by another girl. This girl looks to be the exact opposite of the white girl, dressed in black with a red cape tied around her, wearing a red skirt with black leggings, and with black hair cut short. She puts a hand on White's shoulder and says, "Let it go, Weiss," before extending a hand to pull me up.

"Sorry about Weiss' attitude, she didn't exactly want to come here. I'm Ruby, by the way. Ruby Rose." She extends her hand out and I shake it. I don't know this girl, but I like her already.

"Serena, Serena Yvonne." I reply. "Thanks for the help," I tell Ruby, before turning to Weiss, "and my _sincerest_ apologies for colliding with you." I say in my most falsetto sweet voice.

"Well, we got to go before my sister wonders where we went. It was nice meeting you, Serena." Ruby says. "Let's go already." Weiss says, before they walk off.

 _What a weird duo._ I think to myself before moving to find Bonnie.

"Where have you been? I've been here like 5 minutes!" Bonnie exclaims upon seeing me. Her anger act would have fooled me if her face hadn't seemed more pouty than angry.

"Sorry, got a little sidetracked." I explain sheepishly.

"Well, come on! We don't have all day!" Bonnie says, before taking off again, this time pulling me along with her.

I can honestly say that those 4 hours we spent in the markets were well spent and were among some of the better times I've had recently. When we finally returned to Clemont's house, I was in the happiest moods I've been in for a while.

Of course, that all had to end as well.

"They're here! They're here!"

I'm roused awake by this sudden cry. I look out my window and get the shock of my life.

Prism Tower is on fire.

KNOCK! KNOCK! KNOCK!

There's frantic knocking on my door, and in a daze, I move to open it. It's Clemont and Bonnie, both dressed in their travelling clothes and with a worried look on their faces.

"What…What's going on?" My brain hasn't fully awakened yet, and even though I saw what was going on, I couldn't exactly comprehend the full situation.

"Team Rocket's here. We've got to move." Clemont says, and the words are enough to shock me out of my stupor. "Get changed quick, and meet us in the living room." I quickly change into my travelling clothes, grab my bag and my Pokeballs, and hurry out of my room to the meeting point.

"Where are they focusing on?" I ask.

Clemont opens his backpack and pulls out a tiny handheld device. Immediately, it turns on and shows a 3D representation of Lumiose.

"Currently, they seem to be attacking and focusing their attacks on Prism Tower. They've closed off all the main exits out of the city, and they've got most of the plazas down." Clemont explains.

"So how are we getting out of here?" I ask.

"Not to worry, for I have made a plan for this very scenario!" Clemont proudly announces, before pulling aside the carpenting of the living room floor.

"It's…it's just a wooden floor." I blurt out. There didn't seem to be anything out of the ordinary under the carpet. "I mean, we could dig our way out of here, but there isn't any point in that…"

"No, Serena. That isn't what we're doing." Clemont announces, which confuses me a lot more. Then he reaches down and feels around the floor, muttering "No, not yet, a bit more…" to himself. Finally, he finds what he's looking for. Digging his fingers into the wood, he pulls upwards, and the floor opens up to reveal a passageway."

"THIS is what we're doing." He announces.

"Wait, where does this lead to?" I ask.

"Inside Prism Tower."

"And why are we going there? I don't know if you've noticed, but the building is on fire, brother." Bonnie deadpans.

"Because there are a lot of people in there, and we can help to bring them out of there, preferably alive. Prism Tower may have state-of-the-art defences, but those Rocket goons are going to break in anytime soon. Part of Lumiose's evacuation plan is to always move the citizen into Prism Tower first, before moving them out of the city through the tunnels." Clemont explains, "Underneath Lumiose is an entire network of tunnels, all of which were built in the event of an emergency to bring people to safety outside of Lumiose."

"Well, then, what are we waiting for? Let's go!" Bonnie is the first through the trapdoor.

I look at Clemont. "Say what you want about her, she's still as hyperactive as her 8 year old self."

Clemont rolls his eyes, "Tell me about it," before he climbs down the ladder.

We race through the tunnels, Clemont leading the way with his map of the tunnel network. Eventually we come to a stop before an elevator.

"This elevator leads us right into the gym floor." Clemonts calls for the lift, and seconds later, we're cruising up to the gym floor.

When we reach the floor, I see what Clemont meant. There must have been a thousand people within the gym floor.

"Everyone calm down!" Clemont announces, using a megaphone he had pulled out of his backpack. "Everyone please be calm! Get into groups of 40! You will all be brought into the tunnel system underneath the city. Follow the directional arrows along the wall, and do not turn back! Any questions?" There is silence. "Good, now hurry! Prism Tower workers, to your stations!"

I have to say, I expected chaos. I mean, with invaders attacking and trying to get in, it would have made sense, but no. The Lumiose citizens all get into large groups rather quickly and in an organized manner. Lifts appear from beneath the stadium, and the groups are brought to safety effectively.

We almost made it all.

Because as the last groups were unloading, there was a loud "BANG!" and suddenly where a giant door once stood were a large group of goons all dressed in black with a large R emblazoned in the centre.

"Well, well. Looks like we've got ourselves some piggies trying to escape!" One goon laughs excitedly. "Get them!" he yells, and the group of goons immediately attack.

"Delphox, Light Screen!" I throw my Pokeball, releasing one of my greatest friends in the world. Immediately, a wall of psychic energy surrounds us, protecting the group.

"Scizor, use Brick Break!" One of the goons yells while throwing his Pokeball. In an instant, a Scizor appears, and immediately starts hitting the Light Screen. With every hit, a crack appears, spreading ever wider as Scizor relentlessly attacks.

 _Shit! I can't attack with Delphox while Light Screen is still up!_

"Blaziken, use Blaze Kick!"

Suddenly, a shadow passes my head, and Scizor's attack stops as it quickly moves away from the attacker. I look around in wonder. None of us have a Blaziken, so who's trainer was it?

"Serena!" I turn and to my surprise, see Ruby and Weiss, along with two others helping to attack the goons.

"You help settle the citizens, we'll handle the goons!" She smiles at me. I nod, "Delphox, come on!"

Ruby cracks her knuckles, "Alright, team, let's do this!"

I rush to the elevator, calling out for more of the citizens to rush into the lifts.

"Serena, take them out of the city! Bonnie, go with them!" I hear Clemont yell.

"Bonnie, come on!" I yell, and we both enter the next elevator, travelling to the basement of the tower.

"Well, well, how nice. The little piggies have decided to gift wrap themselves to me!"

 _Oh come on! Of all the people to meet us at the basement, it has to be this guy?_

"Come out of there quietly, and there'll be no trouble. If you don't, well…" He popped a Pokeball, and out came an evil-looking Arbok. "Well, my Arbok is always hungry." He smirked evilly.

"You're despicable." I spit at him.

"No, I'm Gideon. But I know what you mean." He then laughs at his own poor joke, before turning to me.

"Arbok, Wrap!"

Before I can even react, his Arbok shoots forward and wraps its long tail around my waist. I don't even have time to scream before I am yanked out of the elevator.

"Leave her alone!" Bonnie yells, before throwing her Pokeball. "Herdier, Headbutt!"

Her Dog Pokemon runs full force at Arbok, but Gideon calmly commands, "Poison Sting."

Normally, Poison Sting shards aren't very powerful, but when one shard hit Herdier, the Dog Pokemon instantly reeled back in pain.

"Don't bother, lady. That was a warning shot. My Arbok won't be so nice next time." He warns Bonnie, before turning to me.

"Not a bad look. What say you and I have a little private time, missy?" He winks at me, and I feel like I'm going to hurl. I begin to struggle, to do anything to get out of this mess, but I can't. His Arbok has an extremely tight grip on me.

"Don't bother struggling. My Arbok has held on to girls much bigger than you. Just surrender to me." He smirks to himself. "Don't worry, I'm told I'm quite…"

He doesn't get any further before someone yells, "Charizard, Blast Burn!"

Gideon hears the command too late, and soon he is engulfed in flames. His Arbok looks around in confusion as he watches his trainer squirm on the ground in agony.

"Greninja, Water Pulse on that trainer! Alakazam, use Psychic on Arbok!"

The pressure around my waist loosens, and I slip to the ground. I watch as Arbok is lifted off the ground, surrounded by blue tendrils of energy, and watching as a Greninja sprays a torrent of water on the flaming Gideon.

"Alakazam." The mysterious trainer just says the name, and suddenly, Arbok is slammed into the ground so hard that it cracks the steel floor underneath it. It doesn't move.

Gideon slowly gets up, his Rocket uniform singed. "Who dares…"

He is cut off as he is suddenly lifted up into the air by the same blue tendrils of energy. From the shadows, an Alakazam approaches, its spoons held in an X position.

And then, its trainer appears, and my brain malfunctioned.

Even though his outfit has changed, his hair is much messier than normal and his cap is of a different colour, I recognize him.

"You will not mess with anyone else, especially this girl. You've been warned." The trainer threatens, before Alakazam sends him falling out of the air. Gideon lands with a heavy thud, and does not stir.

The trainer then turns to me.

"A..Ash?" I stammer out, still unbelieving of what I'm seeing.

He kneels down and looks me in the eye, before smiling, "Yep, it's me."

At this point, my brain is in turmoil. What do I do now?

Then the irrational part of me kicks in, and I leap up to hug him, tears streaming from my eyes.

"You came back. You really came back." I joyfully say, my voice choked with emotions.

"I did promise, didn't I?" He says back with a smile on his face.

Then the rational side of me kicks in, and I slap him, yelling "Why did you have to leave?!"

 **HAHAHAHAHA! This was the one part I really really wanted to write. For those of you who think that Serena is a bit too bipolar in this case, I will just say that my inspiration came from Thor: The Dark World where (SPOILERS FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T WATCHED IT) Jane Foster slaps Thor upon his return to Earth, even though she is still happy to see him. So I think Serena wasn't that bipolar.**

 **Also, I haven't seen the anime for an age, and I haven't seen a Pokemon use Light Screen in the anime, so if my description of it breaking was wrong, I apologize.**

 **Anyways, here's a fun activity for you guys! I slipped in a really big reference to one of my favourite shows in the story. Fans of the show (and even those who aren't fans, but have seen the show) will recognize it immediately. Have fun!**

 **My schedule is pretty packed this week, so I think the next chap should be somewhere around next week! Please review and leave constructive criticism. I know this chapter wasn't the best, but I'm trying to improve as I go along so please R &R, and I will see you guys in the next chapter!**

 **Also, here's something interesting. I'm in the midst of planning a Pokespe Hearthstone tournament fic, in which trainers like Red, Blue, Green, etc do battle in a Hearthstone tournament between the Pokedex owners. Let me know what you guys think!**

 **Till the next time!**


	3. Arc 1 Chapter 2: Exodus

**Hey guys! So here's Chapter 2 of the story! Oh, and to answer Sir Buttnuggets, I thought about it, and Team RWBY are gonna be in this story. Their Pokemon are:**

 **Ruby: (Mega)Blaziken Pyroar Swadloon Kirlia Illumise Zweilous**

 **Weiss: Swanna Gible Gastly Sudowoodo (Mega)Pidgeot Ariados**

 **Blake: Hypno (Mega)Medicham Beautifly Scatterbug Volbeat Hippopotas**

 **Yang: Clefairy Tauros Emolga Galvantula (Mega)Greninja Onix**

 **Before you guys complain that this doesn't look intimidating, let me point out I did not make this myself. I just used a Random Number Generator from 1 to 721, and these are the first Pokemon to appear. Mega Greninja may not exist yet, so as a template, take the officially released Ash-Greninja design.**

 **Enough talk, let's get to the story!**

Chapter 3

I would be lying if I said I anticipated the slap.

On one hand, I was extremely happy to see Serena again, and I knew she was, too. On the other hand, I also knew she would probably still be furious at my leaving so abruptly two weeks ago.

As it turns out, I was right on both accounts, just not in the way I expected. Case in point, that slap.

I winced in pain, my cheek still stinging from the impact. "I guess I did deserve that."

"Yes, you did," Serena replied, before hugging me again, "and you deserve this too."

Two hugs from the woman I love. That's not too bad. I would take a slap for that.

"Ash! You're back!" I look up to see Bonnie racing towards me, a smile on her face.

Serena moves aside to let her hug me. "Thank goodness you're back! It was sooooo boring without you around! Clemont was too busy working, Serena was too busy moping about…"

At this point, Serena quickly blushes and moves to cover Bonnie's mouth. "The point is, we really missed you, Ash." She nervously stutters out, ignoring Bonnie's struggles to get her to move her hand away.

We're brought back to reality by a sudden tremor. It's a short one, but it's enough to shock the three of us out of our reunion stupor. A few seconds later, another tremor comes.

"Wha…What's that?" Bonnie asks nervously.

"That" I answer, "would be Tauros." I sigh inwardly, prepping myself to delivering another lecture later.

"Tauros? What's a Tauros doing in here?" Serena asked.

"It's not here on this floor," I reply, "It's upstairs." I stand up, "I'll deal with it. Serena, Bonnie, get these people out of here. Meet me at the entrance."

"I'm not leaving you again." Serena grabs my arm defiantly, glaring at me with eyes that dare me to reject her, to run from her again.

"Relax, Serena. This isn't dangerous at all. In fact, they seem to be done upstairs. I just need to be here to wait for them." I reassure her.

"First of all, I don't care if it's dangerous or not. You're not leaving me again. Second, who's they?"

I sigh inwardly. Serena may be a really sweet girl most of the time, but sometimes she could be as stubborn as a Snorlax. Still, it's one of the things I love about her. She refuses to give up no matter what.

"Fine. Bonnie, you know the way, right? Can you lead them out of here?" I call over to Bonnie.

"No problem!" She replies, before calling everyone out of the elevators like a train platform announcer.

Once the people are out of sight, I press one finger to my earpiece. "Team, what's your status?"

"Who are you talking to?" Serena asks quizzically. I don't blame her. Because my earpiece is black, and it matches my hair, it's hard for her to see it, so it probably looks like I'm talking to thin air. I push a portion of hair aside and show her my ear so that she can see it.

"All clear! Man, it was so fun! We totally kicked their…" A shrill and overexcited voice sounds in my ear, making me go temporarily deaf as my eardrum threatens to explode.

"Calm down, Red Leader. 2 things I need you to do. 1) Tell Yellow to control her Tauros. We don't want the whole building crashing down on top of us. 2) Get in an elevator and get down here. Time to go back to base." I order, once my ears stop ringing.

"You got it, boss! Red out!" The link is terminated. A minute later, the elevator creaks to life and moves upwards, leaving Serena and I alone in the room.

The silence just makes it more awkward.

"So…"

"Ummm…"

I decide to start a conversation before things get even more awkward, but before I can get a word out, I find myself unable to speak, mainly because my mouth was covered by another.

Serena deepens the kiss, and I oblige. It's nothing too lustful, not too much passion, but just a kiss charged with emotions, and for a moment, it's just us, the world dissolving into nothingness, until it's just Serena and her cherry lips upon mine…

"AWWW THAT'S SO SWEET!"

In our excitement, none of us realize that the lift had returned, and this time carrying passengers. Upon hearing that scream, we break apart, instinctively turning to face the voice.

"RUBY?" Serena's the first to respond, her eyes widening in shock and surprise.

"Ugh, someone pleassee tear out my eyes."

"Come on, Weiss. You've kissed a guy before, it's not that bad." One of the lift's other occupants, a blonde girl with really long curly hair, replies.

"Not when you're watching someone else do it."

Meanwhile, the lift's two other occupants have different reactions. One, a black-haired girl with a bow on top of her hair, looks disinterested at the on-going conversation, while the other, Clemont, looks ready to bolt out of the lift.

I'm pretty sure I'm blushing madly, but I gather myself and turn to Serena. "Serena, meet Team RWBY."

"I know you. You're that clumsy girl who banged into me in the markets!" Weiss points at Serena and glares at her.

"Weiss, come on. She looks nice enough. I'm Yang, by the way." The blonde introduces herself, before introducing the black-haired girl as Blake.

"You must be Serena. Ash told us so much about you. I must say, you do look as beautiful as he describes you to be." Yang continues.

"Really? I wasn't aware that Ash was talking about me." She says while giving me a glare that, if looks could kill, would have struck me down in an instant. "Care to tell me what's going on?"

"It's…complicated. I promise I'll explain to you later, but right now, we're on a tight schedule. We've got word that Team Rocket are sending reinforcements, so we need to return to base. Now." I address everyone.

"I think…" Serena is cut off by a loud explosion. "…that it can wait. But you've got a lot of explaining to do, Ash."

 _Boy, do I know it._

"Let's blow this joint!" Yang exclaims.  
-

Lumiose is burning.

We emerge from a back exit of the Prism Tower into what could only be described as hell. The once picturesque city is now engulfed in flames. Buildings that once stood tall and firm now lie as rubble and debris. The pavements are littered with craters and potholes.

"My…my city…" Clemont falls to his knees in despair, tears streaming down his eyes. "Wha…What kind of twisted mind would do this?"

I place a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "There wasn't anything you could do. You evacuated everyone at the very least. Team Rocket don't care about how beautiful a city is. They only care about destruction."

"They…They will pay for this." Clemont stands up, and his eyes glint with determination, the same kind of determination I see when he battles, that desire to win.

"They will, but right now we have to get out of here."

"And go where?" Serena asks. "Ash, we can't stay in Lumiose."

"We're not staying here." I reply, before reaching for my earpiece. "Bonnie, where are you?"

"South Gate! They ambushed us, so we had to detour! We need backup!" Bonnie's panic rings through my ears.

"We're coming! Can you hold out a while longer?"

"I think so! Hurry!"

I terminate the link, then turn to Team RWBY, "You guys got that?"

"South Gate." They reply in unison.

"Good, let's go."  
-

Where the South Gate once stood now lies a pile of rubble.

Grunts line the perimeter of the gate, on guard for any signs of life. They had been warned of rebel sightings in the area, and were on the lookout for any stragglers. Apparently, a group of grunts had found some survivors escaping from the Prism Tower, forcing the survivors to race off to the South Gate. Well, with the gate down, there wasn't going to be any other way. Those survivors would probably stay down in the tunnels, forced to hunker down until another team of grunts found them.

Still, the result was unsatisfactory to Rocket Admin Mia.

"Tower 3, come in, damnit!" She yelled into her intercom. There was nothing but static. "Arceus damn them." She muttered, before opening another channel, "I want two teams in the Prism Tower, and I want another team in the tunnels looking for the survivors. The streets are empty, so the people have to be somewhere."

"Yes, m'am! Team 2 and 3 going into the Tower, Team 1 heading into the tunnels!" Another grunt sounded through, before the link was terminated.

Mia sighed in frustration and exhaustion. This raid had been going on for too long, and it was all going wrong. The mission had been simple: take control of Prism Tower, trap everyone else inside the city, and then broadcast the takeover to the rest of Kalos. However, the Tower had been guarded by some serious security systems that repelled a lot of Rocket attacks. It had taken 4 squads of grunts to finally break in, only to find that the people had been evacuated.

To make matters worse, Gideon still wasn't responding. He was supposed to intercept the runaways and capture them, but it had been an hour and he still hadn't responded yet.

Mia wiped sweat from her brow. She was under a lot of pressure. Recently appointed to the rank of Admin, the Lumiose mission was the biggest raid she had to plan. Success was a must, not just for Team Rocket, but for her. And now, everything seemed to be falling apart.

 _Calm down. Think of the positives. The rebels are trapped underneath the tunnels, surrounded by grunts. They can't come through the South Gate, and they can't return to Prism Tower. They have to stay where they are, and we'll eventually catch them._

Taking solace in that, Mia sat back and waited for the message that the mission was a success.  
-

"They've blocked off the South Gate. That means everyone is trapped underneath in the tunnels." Ruby reported.

"Shit. They've likely got reinforcements waiting in the Tower in case they show up there. Can they go back to any other gate?" I ask.

"Kirlia, can you show us the other gates?" Ruby asks her Pokemon.

"Kirl!" The Emotion Pokemon concentrates, and a ball of psychic energy materializes. A bunch of images begin to appear.

"Doesn't look good. Every single gate is blocked off." Ruby reports solemnly.

"There has to be a way! Bonnie's trapped in there!" Clemont yells angrily.

"Calm down, Clemont. We'll find a way." I reassure him, before it hits me.

"A way…A way." I mutter to myself.

"You got a plan?" Serena asks.

"It's crazy, but possible." I reply.

"Clemont, what Pokemon does Bonnie have?" I ask him.

"Umm, wait a minute…Bunnelby, Tynamo, Dedenne and Sandile, I think. Why?"

I smile, "Because I know how's she getting out of there."  
-

"So anyways, the guy is left with, like, 11 health, and I have 1 left…"

Sometimes, being a grunt isn't easy, and for grunts Michael and Mason, this was definitely the case. They could have been scouting for survivors under Prism Tower or even be back at base relaxing, but nope. They had drawn the short straw and ended up guarding a pile of rubble, just in case something popped out.

At first, it had seemed fun. The two envisioned themselves finding rebels and being glorified by Admin Mia for doing so. But after 5 minutes, they realized that their job sucked. The rubble was rather thick, and there was no way a human could have crawled through, so they effectively had to stand there and watch out for rebels they knew were never coming. Naturally, with such a boring job, their minds began to wander, and it turned into a conversation about pretty much anything they could do.

"And then I end up topdecking…" Michael stops.

"What, man? What did you get?" Mason asked.

"Shush for a moment. Did you hear that?"

"What?"

"Sounds like…digging."

Suddenly, from in between two pieces of rubble, a Dedenne appeared.

"Dedenne?" It stares up at the two grunts with a cute smile.

"Dude, that's a Dedenne! Let's catch it!" Michael calls out to his fellow grunt, and they approach the tiny mouse together.

"Man, a Dedenne! My little girl's gonna love it! My legs are shaking in anticipation!" Mason exclaimed.

"Mine too! Wait…what?" Michael replied instinctively, before pausing. "Why are my legs shaking too?"

It was at this moment that the ground beneath them gave way. Without any time to yell, they found themselves tumbling into the ground.  
-

"All clear, we're good to go!" Ruby exclaimed. We waste no time.

"Alakazam!" "Delphox!" "Diggersby!" "Tauros!" "Hypno!" "Sudowoodo!" The air is rife with our calls and Pokeballs as one by one our Pokemon come forth.

"Alakazam, use Psychic!" "Delphox, use Psychic!" "Diggersby, use Seismic Toss!" "Tauros, LIFT!" "Hypno…" "Sudowoodo, Rock Smash!"

The 6 Pokemon work together to lift pieces of the rubble away. Soon, the path is cleared of rubble, revealing an empty patch of dirt.

"Ummm, where's the exit to the tunnels?" Weiss asks.

"Clemont?" I signal to him, and he nods. "Tunnel sequence 148276, voice override: Clemont Citron. Activate opening sequence." He says to the ground.

As soon as the last word escapes his mouth, the ground in front of us opens up to reveal a stairway.

"Bonnie, you guys are clear! Go, go, go!" I yell.

A few seconds later, Bonnie's head pops out. "We're free!"

"A tad melodramatic, but yeah, you're free." Blake says without much emotion.

Suddenly, the wind around us picks up tremendously, and we look up to see a cruiser landing in front of us. The front door opens, and out steps a woman dressed in a red cloak.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? Some guinea pigs trying to escape?" She says.

"Who are you?" I ask menacingly. She certainly doesn't look friendly.

"Oh dear, such rudeness. I cannot tolerate that. Just like I cannot tolerate failure in any form. Unfortunately, both have occurred, and so I'm afraid I must teach you a lesson." There is a tinge of anger in her tone, as she parts her cloak to reveal a belt of Pokeballs.

"Serena, Clemont, Bonnie, get everyone out and evacuate them. We'll handle her." I tell them.

"How charming. But no one's going anywhere. Flygon, Claydol, Sandstorm!" She throws her Pokeballs, and both Pokemon materialize. Her Flygon turns beating its wings quickly, stirring up sand, while Claydol starts spinning rapidly.

"Oh no you don't! Pidgeot, Whirlwind!" Weiss throws her Pokeball, and upon materializing, her Pidgeot starts blowing the other way, stopping the sand from rising.

"Serena, go!" I yell back. I can see Bonnie and Clemont leading people up the stairwell, and leading them out of Lumiose. We've come so far now. We can't fail.

"I'm not…" She argues back, before I grab her shoulders.

"Listen, this is an Admin. They're much more powerful than you can imagine. You're a good battler, but you can't beat one. I've encountered these people before, and they pull zero punches." I tell her, before pulling her in. "I will return. Follow Bonnie and Clemont. I promise I'll come back to you."

"I'm not losing you again." She whispers quietly.

"You won't." I reply. She looks me in the eyes, then kisses my cheek.

"For good luck. Make sure you return, or I'll track your spirit down and kill you again." She tells me, before racing off to join Bonnie and Clemont.

I turn to the battlefield. "Let's get this over with."

Both Weiss and Blake had gone to help with the evacuation, leaving me, Ruby and Yang on the field.

"You're going down, bitch." Yang announces.

"You have no idea who you are dealing with, child." The woman sneers, before announcing, "When you die, know that you fell at the hands of Mia Wulfried. Flygon, Dragon Pulse!"

"Charizard, let's go!" I throw out my Pokeball, summoning one of my greatest friends in the world.

"Blaziken, come on out!" Ruby yells. "Greninja, you're up!" Yang calls.

"So… 3 on 3 it is." Mia says. "I think it's only fair for me to have a third member. Come forth, Hydreigon!"

Her Hydreigon materializes, but it looks…different. Instead of its trademark purple and blue scheme, it's body is green.

"Oh shit, that's a shiny." Ruby exclaims.

"Indeed. So, my young duellers, do you still think you can match me?" Mia laughs condescendingly.

"Yes." I say without hesitation. "Why not look at our Pokemon more closely?"

Mia looks with condescending eyes, "Nothing shiny about them. Nothing to suggest…"

Then she sees it, and her eyes widen.

"No…"

"Yes." I reply. "Ruby, Yang?"

"Let's do it."

I raise my hand, fingers coming into contact with the wristband on my glove. More specifically, the stone embedded in its centre. Ruby touches her necklace, while Yang touches behind her ear.

"Beyond evolution! MEGA EVOLVE!" We yell simultaneously.

Instantly, our Pokemon are engulfed in energy. We hear their transformation, we see them change before our eyes, becoming more powerful with every second.

When the smoke clears, our Mega Pokemon stand ready for battle.

"It…it can't be…"

"Believe it, bitch!" Ruby yells.

"Blaziken, Blaze Kick!"

"Greninja, Hydro Pump!"

"Charizard, Dragon Pulse!"

Our Pokemon attack ferociously, Blaziken targeting Claydol, Greninja attacking Flygon and my Mega Charizard X attacking Hydreigon. All of our attacks are direct hits.

"Shit...this was unexpected. All of you, return!" Mia retrieves her Pokemon, before turning to us.

"You've won this time, but don't expect me to go easy on you guys next time. I will take revenge." She glares at us, before returning to her craft. The landing platform retracts, and it begins to take off.

"That…was easier than expected." Yang commented.

"We got lucky. This time, we caught her off guard." I reply. "Come on, let's get back to..."

No sooner are the words out of my mouth does my earpiece come to life. It's Bonnie.

"Ash…Ash, are you there?"

"Bonnie? What's wrong?" My voice registers her panic, and I begin to worry. Did they make it?

"Ash…we…"

"Bonnie, where are you guys?"

"We're in the base, we're safe, but Serena…"

It's as though the world has frozen around me, and I ask the next question with trepidation, "What about her, Bonnie? What happened?"

"She…She…"

 **CLIFFHANGER GUYS! What's happened to Serena? What's going on? What will happen next? Find out next week on Pokemon: Rise Of Evil!**

 **Anyways, just to address some things you guys might find flawed,**

 **1) Greninja has no Mega. Like I said above, look at the official template for Ash-Greninja.**

 **2) I'm pretty sure Lumiose doesn't have underground tunnels. Or gates. Remember, I didn't play X and Y, and the anime doesn't give the full scale of Lumiose City, so I'm just imagining these things.**

 **3) Whirlwind doesn't blow away Sandstorm. This one is because I figured gale force winds can also blow away sand, so it's there for that reason.**

 **If you enjoyed this, leave a review and don't be afraid to criticise my work or bring up story ideas! The story is constantly evolving so I'm accepting ideas, and I really want this story to be amazing, so help me make it more enjoyable with your criticism.**

 **Alright, that's it for now! I'll see you guys in another week! Till the next time, Pokefans!**


	4. Arc 1 Chapter 3: Mole

**Hey guy! So I'm finally back with another chapter for this story! And before you guys rage at me over Serena, please read this chapter before doing anything rash, ok? Thank you!**

 **So yeah, Chapter 3!**

Chapter 3

 _Pain. Unimaginable pain. It hurts, it burns so bad…_

 _Everywhere is racked with pain and I feel like I'm on fire. I try to scream but nothing comes out._

 _I can't move. Something is holding me down, and no matter how hard I try, I can't break free._

 _I try to open my eyes, but it's too bright, and I can't keep them open for too long._

 _And then I hear them. At first distant, then slowly getting closer._

 _Voices.  
-_

"She's going to be fine. Her body is recuperating remarkably well, considering what she went through."

"But how long till she wakes up?"

"Well, that we can't say for certain. But since she's already recuperating fast, she shouldn't take anymore than a week to wake up."

I nod in appreciation. "Ok, thanks doc. And you too, Blissey." I thank the medical staff and the pink Pokemon.

"Blissey Bliss!" Blissey cried cheerfully.

"I'll leave you to your work, Doc." I stand up and leave the ward.

I've been trying to keep my face as stoic as possible—don't want to show weakness to anyone here—but as soon as I leave the ward, I heave a sigh of relief. My worst fears weren't realized.

"What'd the doc say?" Yang asked. She and her team, plus Bonnie and Clemont, are all waiting outside the ward, and they lean forward to hear what I have to say.

"The doctor said she'll be fine. She's recuperating really fast, according to the doc. She'll wake up in up to a week." I report to them.

Everyone breathes a sigh a relief, except Weiss, who looks disinterested.

"That's a relief. I wouldn't want to have spied on her for nothing." She huffs out.

"Weiss, be nice. Serena seems nice enough. There isn't a reason why you should hate her." Ruby tuts. Weiss scoffs and turns away.

"I'm just glad she's safe." Bonnie sighs.

"On the subject of Serena, what did happen on the road? How'd she get injured?" I asked.

Bonnie and Clemont looked down, their faces darkening.

"It's a long story." Clemont warns, before continuing.

"We're all running towards the base, thinking we were home-free. After all, you, Yang and Ruby managed to hold back that Admin, and most of the Grunts were in the city, so we assumed we were safe."

"So it was really surprising when a large cruiser came out of nowhere and blocked us. Apparently there was another group of grunts outside the city, hoping to pick up stragglers. When they saw us, they attacked."

"Luckily, most of us had Pokemon, so we began to fight back. But most of the grunts had tough Pokemon, like Houndoom and Sandslash ( **A/N: I don't care if they aren't good in the meta. I like them, and I find them tough.)** so we began to lose ground."

"Bonnie and I were battling against a group of maybe 6 grunts. We had a tough fight on our hands, and we were—we still are—really tired from the attack. I almost collapsed, and in an instant, a Houndoom and a Crobat came towards me."

"I didn't have any Pokemon on me left, and even if I did, I couldn't react in time. Then Crobat used Glare on me, and I literally couldn't move. I could only watch as those Pokemon came at me."

"Serena…Serena saved me. She came out of nowhere, just shoved me aside, right at the moment when both Pokemon launched their attacks; Houndoom using Flamethrower and Crobat with Poison Fang."

Clemont fell silent, obviously trying to suppress those memories.

"She got the Flamethrower right through her back, and the Poison Fang hit her in the back too. She screamed…oh Arceus, that scream…"

"Clemont, stop." I order him, partly because I couldn't bear to hear any more, and partly because Clemont looked about to pass out. "Clemont, it's not your fault Serena got hurt. Don't blame yourself for it."

"I'm sorry, Ash. It's just…it really is my fault. If I hadn't gotten paralyzed, I might have been able to fight back." Clemont stared down at his feet as tears welled in his eyes. "It…"

"Stop blaming yourself, Clemont!" Bonnie exclaimed suddenly, glaring at her brother. "Serena chose to help you! It wasn't your fault! You didn't force her to leap in front of you to save you!"

"Ugh, will you guys just pipe down? Obviously he's still going to knock himself up over it, so there's no point telling him not to." Weiss suddenly pipes up, earning a hard glare from everyone except Clemont and Bonnie.

"Weiss, stop it. Don't make him feel any worse than he already feels." Blake replies angrily.

"I'm just saying, there's no point-"

"Can it, Weiss." Yang growls menacingly at Weiss, and Weiss glares back at her.

"Alright, alright. Everyone back to your dorms before this becomes into a brawl." I order, my voice cutting through everyone else's. Weiss turns to argue, but I glare at her until she thinks better of it. Reluctantly, everyone gets up, Bonnie supporting Clemont and they file out of the corridor.

"Ruby, tell Diantha I'm not going to be at the meeting tomorrow." I call out to the red-hooded girl.

"You're not coming with us?" She asks. I shake my head, "I'm staying with Serena."

Ruby doesn't walk away. Instead, she turns to face me, and walks towards me.

"Ash, Diantha needs you tomorrow." Her voice is now hushed, like she's keeping a secret. "You know Siebold gonna tear her apart if you don't show."

"Ruby…I can't leave her. Even though I know she's in good hands, I just can't." I explain, turning to look inside the ward at the resting girl's face, that beautiful face, belonging to a girl that I loved.

"You really love her, don't you?" Ruby asks, turning to follow my eyes. "She's nice, from what I know about her. Real pretty too." There's no jealousy or malice in her voice, only kindness and sincerity.

"I love her more than anything in this world, Ruby. Well, with the exception of Pokemon, but I would anything for her. I can't bear to see her like this." I confess. That was one thing I liked about Ruby: she was incredibly perceptive for her age, and though that perception is intermixed with a child-like naivety of the world, she was still someone who you could talk to without a fear of a biased opinion.

"Then you need to be at that meeting tomorrow." Ruby's words catch me off guard, and I turn to her, mystified as to how she managed to come to that conclusion.

"Look, we're discussing what are we going to do about Kalos and the Lumiose survivors. Evidently, Siebold's gonna go for the option where only the best of the survivors—those who can battle and what not—come through into the alliance. Lysandre's a dark horse; we have no idea where he's going to go, but let's say he does support Siebold. That leaves me and Diantha who want to save everyone. If you're not there, the vote goes to a deadlock, and it will go to the populace here. We're low on space, and we have quite a lot of survivors here—almost the entire population of Lumiose. You think the populace is going to let them in, just like that? And if he supports us, you can help reinforce the vote. Regardless, you're needed here."

I muse through what Ruby tells me, while also trying to keep a lid on my emotions. Siebold's been playing power games since he lost the vote for leadership. If the vote went the way Ruby said it would, Siebold's view would probably triumph. If that happened, there would have to be tryouts to determine who could stay and who would be kicked out.

Normally, this wouldn't be an issue, but Kalos just got invaded. Sending people out of here would be akin to a death sentence.

"So I've got to be there to ensure the vote goes our way." I conclude, before asking, "And what does this have to do with Serena?"

"Be truthful to yourself, Ash. Serena's a Pokemon Performer. A semi-decent battler, but mostly a Performer. Do you honestly think that she could make it through a tryout? Plus, if Siebold gets wind of your feelings for her, he'll do whatever he can to discredit you by saying you're too emotional to be a decent leader. At this stage, division is not what we need." Ruby tells me.

I sigh, "Damn politics. Wonder why I didn't just give the role to someone else."

"The people love you, Ash. They respect you. True, their own leaders are worthy of respect, but you're a legend here. They chose you to represent them on the council."

I sigh inwardly. Ruby's right.

"Alright." I've made up my mind. Turning to face Serena, I bid a silent goodbye, "I'll be there at that meeting. Now come on, let's get to bed."

And we walk out of the hospital.

I arrive at the conference room early, as is my normal routine whenever it comes to council meetings. I need to soothe my nerves before they get frayed—as they usually do—during the meeting.

Ruby and Diantha, as usual, are already there. The three of us are an odd alliance. Even though I had beaten her in the Kalos Pokemon League, she was still much loved by the people, so much so that she was voted as one of the leaders of the Kalosian rebel cell with the highest popularity vote. Since I was a foreigner, though I had won the hearts of many (apparently), I wasn't considered local enough to know Kalosian cultures. So it surprised everyone when Diantha picked me as her second-in-command.

Choosing Ruby had been easy. I met her after winning the Kalos league, and we hit it off as really good friends. Even then, her perception and view of the world wasn't any different than what it was currently. That made her an easy pick for the council. She got along really well with Diantha, and the three of us formed a sort-of alliance.

"Morning, guys." I call out.

"Good morning, Ash. I'm sorry about Serena, and I truly wish her a speedy recovery. Do you know when she's waking up?" Diantha asks, and I smile at my friend's concern for Serena.

"Thanks, Diantha. The doctors say she should wake up in no more than a week's time." I reply.

"That's good to hear."

"Ah, look. Everyone is already here."

I grit my teeth together as one of my least favourite people in Kalos came into the room.

Where do I begin with Siebold? I guess it was his attitude. When I met him for the first time, in the chambers of the Pokemon League, he had asked me if I saw battling as an art. Baffled, I had answered with the first thing that came to my mind, "Not really."

Immediately, his entire attitude changed. He berated me for apparently not sharing his opinion. His sudden change in attitude caught me completely off guard, and I immediately gained a dislike for him. I fought him with everything I had, and completely swept his team, even his Mega Blastoise. Since then, we never were the best of friends.

When he was voted into council, I thought that things were going to get ugly, and I was right. Siebold and I got into a lot of arguments within the council. He had become a kind of elitist, believing that only the strongest trainers were worthy of being in the rebellion. I was vehemently against that.

Behind Siebold was a man in fiery red hair that poked out in a star-shape. Lysandre, the former leader of Team Flare, was also on our council. I didn't actually have many problems with Lysandre, because he had switched out his views that humanity didn't deserve to live. That didn't mean I trusted him, though.

"Well then, how about we get started?" Siebold and Lysandre find their seats, and Diantha calls for the meeting to start.

"No, absolutely not. We are not going to do it like this." Diantha stands her ground.

"Diantha, you need to see reason here. Almost the entire population of Lumiose is in here. We barely have enough space, and since Lilycove was destroyed, our food supplies are dwindling. We cannot support so many people." Siebold sighs exasperatedly as he explains his logic again.

"You know, food wouldn't be an issue if you hadn't voted to try to remove the crops in here and focus on training the rebels for battle." Ruby snipes.

"Think, child. If we kept the crops in here, we would have had to expand our base even more. That requires more resources spent there, and ultimately, we need the resources for training. Considering that Team Rocket has already invaded, wouldn't you say we should focus on preparing for war with them?" Siebold questions mockingly.

"Hungry soldiers don't make for good soldiers, Siebold." I bring up, pissed off at how cold Siebold is. "Besides, now that Team Rocket have invaded, what do you think would happen if we send these people out? You think Team Rocket's gonna let them go?"

"Better a few thousand peasants get sacrificed than allowing everyone to stay and drag down training. Look at these people. Some of them have never battled, some haven't battled in a long time. They're a waste of resources to train." Siebold argues back.

"Enough. Siebold, Ash, lay off each other." Diantha orders, flashing me an apologetic frown, before turning to Lysandre, "What say you, Lysandre?"

"I think Siebold's wrong." Lysandre replies, without hesitation.

The council room goes silent. Even though we all knew Lysandre had to vote, we didn't expect him to be so quick about it.

"You remember I was from Team Flare once. We all shared one goal: to wipe humanity off the face of the earth. I chose this goal because I only saw the bad in humanity. Calem's victory over me made me change my outlook on that, but some things just never change." He says, before turning to Siebold.

"You, Siebold, you represent everything about humanity I disliked. You're selfish, elitist and too self-centred. You believe that only purists like you deserve to live, and you treat the rest like filth. I am not standing by this view, no matter what you do to me."

Siebold's face is a mask of anger, "You will regret this, Lysandre."

"I regret many things, Siebold, but this is not one of them." Lysandre replies.

The room is silent for a while, before Diantha speaks, "Does anyone else want to speak?" When no one replies, she calls for a vote.

"Those in favour raise your hands." Diantha, Ruby, Lysandre and I raise our hands. "That's 4 to 1, Siebold. The Lumiose citizens stay."

Siebold looks furious, but takes a deep breath and looks away. "Very well. Do not come crying to me when this backfires on you."

With that, Diantha closes the meeting. As everyone gets up to leave, she calls out to me, "Ash, could you stay for a bit?"

Once everyone leaves, she sits back in her chair and takes a deep breath.

"This was not what I signed up for."

"Siebold's a total pain, I know. Trust me, none of us thought it would be like this." I say as I pour a cup of coffee for her.

"I couldn't agree more." She accepts the cup gratefully with a "Thanks", and takes a long sip of it.

"To business." She sets her cup down, before continuing, "Ash, there is a major crisis going on inside the base. Someone has been leaking information outside."

I pause, completely stunned. A security leak? This was the worst thing that could happen to us.

"How do we know this?"

"About an hour after you and Team RWBY left for Lumiose, our communications were compromised. Earlier, we intercepted a transmission from a Team Rocket cruiser. According to them, Team Rocket thought the city was an easy target to take over, and it wouldn't require additional squads."

"When Clemont and Bonnie returned to base with the Lumiose citizens, one of our agents captured a Grunt. After interrogation, we found that during our comms blackout, someone had contacted them, telling them that a small squad of rebels was coming into the city."

"That would explain why it was so hard getting out of there." I recall.

"A mole within is the last thing we need at this stage. So I need some backup. I plan to investigate this, but that would mean travelling to Camphrier Town and visiting Cassius for help. So, I'm installing you as emergency leader of the Kalosian rebel cell in my absence."

If Diantha said anything else, it didn't register in my head, because my brain just shut down. Leader of the rebels? Even if it was temporary, that was still some really huge responsibility.

"Diantha, I'm honoured. But I don't think I'm suited for this—"

"Ash, I've thought long and hard about this. You're the prime candidate for my choice. The people love you, and you're a hero to them. The Lumiose citizens look up to you, and you have charisma. You always do things the right way, and you know how to navigate Siebold." She smiles at my reaction, then continues, "You're the perfect candidate for the role."

"But who would take the last spot on the council?" I ask.

"I'll leave that to you, but I would recommend someone who wouldn't mind standing in for a short time. Perhaps that Weiss character Ruby keeps talking about?"

I blanch. "Weiss? She wouldn't even show up for half these meetings if she wanted to. She's almost as self-centred as Siebold."

"Really? Ruby tells me a slightly different story. Regardless, it's your choice." Diantha replies, before adding, "This is an order, by the way."

I sigh, and smile, "Guess I don't really have a choice, do I?"

"Not really. Relax, you'll be a great leader." Diantha encourages.

"Then I accept this responsibility."

Diantha claps her hands in delight, "Merveilleuse!" When I stare blankly at her, she blushes, "Sorry, that meant wonderful. It's an old Kalosian dialect."

"Is that all?" I ask.

"One last thing. Watch out for Siebold. He's definitely not happy with the result. I wouldn't put it past him doing something ridiculous." She warns, before leaving the room, leaving me to ponder about her words—and what I was going to do as leader.  
-

 _The pain is gone._

 _Not fully, but it's mainly gone. I still feel the burning sensation on me, but it's not so painful now. In fact, it seems insignificant._

 _I'm still immobilized, and I still feel like I can't open my eyes, because I fear that blinding light. But I hope to get there someday. Somehow, I know that light is a good thing, but my subconscious tells me to avoid it._

 _The blissful silence is interrupted and I hear a voice that pounds through my head._

" _Hey."_

 _I try to reply but can't open my mouth to speak. My instincts tell me to run and hide but something tells me…to stay and hear that voice._

 _That voice is friendly. I don't know how I can tell._

" _I don't know if you can hear me…"_

 _That voice. It's so familiar. Where is it from? I want to look upon the person this voice belongs to, but I fear the light._

' _Come on, Serena! Don't fear it!' A voice sounds, reverberating around me._

" _I really hope you wake up soon."_

 _Wake up! The voice yells, and it reverberates around me, pumping through my head, until all I hear is that voice._

 _Wake up! Wake up! WAKE UP!_

' _Alright, shut up!' If I could say something, that would probably be what I'd say._

 _Gathering my courage, I open my eyes, ready to face the blinding light…_

 **Cliff-hanger! So as you guys can see, Serena's fine. Anyways, not much to say about this chapter, except I had a lot of fun writing it. Sorry if there's not a lot of action, that comes in the next two chapters. So please be patient!**

 **Hope you guys enjoyed, and I will see you all in the next chapter! RWBYSanctum, OUT!**


	5. Arc 1 Chapter 4: Conflict

**Hey guys! I apologize for the really late submission, but I had a lot of problems with this chapter as you'll find out below. Anyways, a word before I begin.**

 **Thank you to all of you who helped encourage me to write this story. It's my first venture into the Pokemon fanficverse, but your support has helped me immensely. It's really awesome of you guys, and I truly appreciate it. I hope you guys enjoy reading this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it.**

 **Onwards!**

Chapter 4

Light. Just as it has before, it blinds me. I instinctively close my eyes to protect myself from it.

 _Come on, Serena. It's just light, it can't hurt you._

Slowly, I force my eyes open, raising a hand to shield myself from the light. It takes a few moments to acclimatize, but eventually I'm able to open my eyes fully.

I take a look around, trying to recognize my surroundings. I'm in some kind of hospital ward. Other empty beds take up the rest of the space, and there are trays laden with hospital equipment like syringes, stethoscopes and the like.

 _What happened? Why am I here?_

I try to sit up, and immediately my head explodes in pain. I lie back, gritting my teeth as the pain slowly ebbs away. Once the pain disappears, I try to sit up again, only this time much slower. The pain doesn't come.

Until I make the mistake of pushing my left hand into the bed.

Instantly, my hand experiences a sharp pain, and I instinctively cry out, looking at my hand to figure out what happened. It is then I notice that I was strapped to an IV drip, with the needle poking into my left hand.

"Bliss!" I look up to see a giant pink Pokemon that looks like it's wearing a tutu staring at me with a joyful expression on its face. I immediately recognize it as a Blissey, and judging from the nurse's cap on its head, it's a medic.

"Hey Blissey, can you help me remove this IV?" I ask the Pokemon, hoping it would help me. I had seen a few movies where the hero, after waking up, immediately pulls the IV out himself and rushes into danger, but I refuse to do it myself because 1) I don't know how to, 2) I don't have the strength to get it out on one yank, and 3) I had no idea what kind of damage that could do.

"Serena?"

I am suddenly engulfed by two arms, pushing tubes and the like into my body, and all I can see is Ash Ketchum embracing me tightly. Normally, I could take a little hug, but my ribs were bandaged up and so I felt a sharp pain flare up.

"Can't…breathe…" I wheezed out. Luckily, Ash heard me, and he pulled away.

"Sorry, got a little…" He trailed off, his face a deep shade of red.

"Carried away?" I asked.

"You could say that." He laughs, before adding, "Just glad you're safe, Serena."

"Ah, Miss Yvonne. You're awake." The voice belongs to a female doctor who appears to my right. She has short black hair and a slim figure, with slightly dark skin.

"Serena, this is Doctor Leslie Thompkins, our head doctor. She's been treating you since you were warded. Doctor Thompkins, Serena Yvonne, a dear good friend of mine." Ash introduces us.

"More than friends from what I've been hearing." Dr Thompkins winks at him, and his face turns beetroot red.

"Thanks for the treatment, Dr Thompkins." I reply, partly to save Ash further embarrassment.

"Please, call me Lee." She replies with a smile, reaching over to shake my hand.

"So, Dr Thompkins, how long before Serena can be discharged?" Ash asks.

"Well, I rather she stay for at least a day, just to make sure she's fully recovered." Lee replied.

"Alright, then. Thanks again, Doc." Ash smiles, then turns to me. "See you tomorrow."

"See you." I say with a blush.

After Ash leaves, Lee turns to me.

"You are one lucky girl."

My face could put a Magmar's to shame.  
-

The next day couldn't come fast enough.

I waited anxiously outside the ward, waiting for Serena to come out of the room. I knew there wasn't anything wrong with her—Lee would have told me otherwise—but the wait was killing me. I wanted nothing more than to see Serena safe and unhurt.

Finally, after a brutal wait of about 15 minutes—though it felt longer to me—the door opened and Serena walked out, along with Lee.

The minute I saw her, I just let loose and ran at her, embracing her warmly. She was caught off guard for a while, but eventually she caught on and embraced me back.

"Well, I'll just be on my way then. Good luck out there, Serena." Lee said, before walking back into the ward. We just stood there, still embracing, until finally Serena broke away from me.

"Ash…where am I? Where are we? Are we still in Kalos? What's happened?" Serena asked in a rapid-fire way.

"Calm down, Serena. I'll explain everything." I soothed her, before grabbing her hand gently, "But first, let me give you the grand tour."

We make our way out of the building, and I begin explaining.

"When I left Kalos 2 weeks ago, I thought I could take down Giovanni by myself. I was wrong. Totally wrong. I challenged him to a battle when I reached Kanto, but he defeated me easily. Humiliated, I ran off, but it taught me a lesson: I couldn't take on him alone. I needed a group of like-minded people to help me."

"I travelled around the 6 regions, hoping to recruit people to a group that could hopefully help take him down. Turns out I didn't really need to do much. There were a lot of people in the regions that wanted to take down Giovanni as badly as I did. The only problem was, they quickly began to lose morale with every Team Rocket victory. Also, they were really nationalistic. Most regions didn't want the help of other regions. I needed to rally them, to persuade them to fight back, and unite the rebels under one cause."

"So I found the two strongest trainers in every region and we agreed that we had to ally together. Together with these guys, we founded the Rebellion. Every region has one rebel cell, each with their own leadership, but we all communicated with one another, each helping one another."

"So, to answer your first question, we are in the Kalosian cell of the Rebellion. As for what happened while you were gone, I'll fill you in on that later."

"So why did you come to Kalos?" Serena asked, "Not that I'm complaining, but your home is Kanto. Shouldn't you have helped them?"

"Kanto's under Team Rocket control. There wasn't much anyone could do to counter them. I wanted to help regions that hadn't been taken over yet, so I chose Kalos." I replied.

"Is that the entire reason?" Serena's voice took on a mischievous note, and I couldn't help but blush at that.

"Well, no. There was another reason why I chose Kalos." I said, smiling at her.

"And what might that be?" She grins, leaning in closer.

"Ah, our Kalosian Queen has awakened from her deep slumber!"

Serena's grin drops and I frown as we turn to face the one person in the world I wished to throttle.

"Master Siebold. I didn't think you were a part of the Kalosian cell." Serena greeted.

"Ah, ma'cherie, when Kalos is in danger, we Elite Four members must step up and defend it." Siebold replies.

"What do you want, Siebold?" I ask gruffly.

"Oh, I'm simply passing through and I happened to catch you two." Siebold straightens, before adding, "I simply must be off. Have some business to attend to. It was nice meeting you, Miss Yvonne." With that, he walks off.

"Always hated his pretentious ass." Serena seethes.

"Don't let him get to you." I soothe, "Come on, let me show you your room."  
-

It had been a nice reunion. Once we had settled in her room (she loved it), I brought her to Clemont and the others. Seeing she was safe, everyone had cheered and celebrated. It had been a while before everyone decided to leave her be, and the two of us returned to her room.

We were chatting animatedly with one another, all thoughts of war and rebellion cast away. At the moment, it was just the two of us talking, like nothing was wrong with the world.

Then Serena asked, "Ash, can I ask you something?"

"Sure. Go ahead."

Just as Serena asked her question, an ear-piercing shriek filled the air. Instinctively, we covered our ears, but the short time I had to hear the shriek made me worry.

"What's going on?" Serena mouthed over the sound of the siren.

"Proximity alert." I replied.

"What's that mean?"

"It means the enemy is nearby."

We stopped communicating as we let the words sink in. This was a disaster for us. If Team Rocket had indeed found the base…

"We have to go." I mouthed.

"Go where?"

"The amphitheatre. It's where we gather when the siren sounds." I reply. Serena nods, and we help each other up.

The amphitheatre is noisier than the siren. Most of the rebels who had been around for a while knew what was going on, but many of the Lumiose citizens were disoriented, trying to get answers to what was going on.

"Wait here. I need to address the crowd." I tell Serena. She nods, and I move away, pushing through the crowd to get to the front.

Most of the council is already there, waiting. Ruby waves at me when she sees me, and I acknowledge.

Once I'm at the front, Lysandre speaks into a microphone.

"Order! Order!"

It takes a while but the crowd eventually calms down, taking their seats.

I take a deep breath, and address them.

"Good evening to all of you. We apologize for disturbing your peaceful evening, but this is potentially a matter of grave consequence. It concerns the safety of every one of us in here. Siebold here will tell you more." It made sense for me to divert to Siebold, considering he was also our technical consultant.

Siebold stood before delivering the news, "This evening, at approximately 1900 hours, we were picked up by an unidentified object. We are still investigating to find the cause of the ping, but we wanted to ensure everyone in the base was safe in case this object has any hostile intentions."

"We managed to acquire a few grainy images of the object," and as he said this, a picture appeared on the visualizer screen behind us, "and as you can see, it is difficult for us to discern at the moment."

The image was in really bad quality, and we couldn't quite make out what we were supposed to be looking at. At first glance, it looked like some kind of Frisbee, though that obviously was not the case.

"We are working to find out what this foreign object is and its intentions, and we hope you can…"

Siebold was cut off by a loud static sound. The visualizer started to fizz out, the image warping, until we were staring into the face of a red-cloaked woman.

I sucked in my breath. This was the same woman whom we had battled when we were fleeing Lumiose.

"Hello, rebels." She spoke, and I realized it was a video feed. "I can see we are all gathered around. How nice. This makes my job much easier."

"You're that woman we fought when we were running." I say, trying to recall her name. Mila? Something close to that, at any rate.

"Names are for friends, and you, Mr Ketchum, are not my friend." The woman replied, before continuing, "I did not come here to make acquaintances, only to bring a message from my leader Giovanni to you."

"Mia! Your name is Mia Wulfried!" I suddenly recall.

The woman glares at me, as if it is a sin to interrupt her, before continuing as if I had said nothing.

"As we speak, our forces are gathering to launch an assault on your base. Yes, we know where your base is, thanks largely to someone amongst you."

I bristle. The mole…I had been so worried about Serena I forgot all about it. Behind me, the rebels muttered amongst themselves.

"Yes, thanks to our inside agent, we were able to find your base. We are now en route to your location, and we will destroy you all. Unless…" she trails off.

"We will not surrender to terrorist scum like you!" Lysandre announces, his face a mask of anger.

"Ah, Lysandre. Noble words spoken by one who once threatened the destruction of humanity, hmmm?" She taunted, unaffected by Lysandre's words.

"I have seen the error of my ways, and I will fight to defend what is right. Unlike you." Lysandre counters.

"Whatever. Regardless, hear our demands. We will leave you be under the conditions that you surrender all your Pokemon to us within the hour."

"HA!" Even so far away, Yang's laugh is still audible.

"You will do so, or be destroyed. And also…" she grins, "To ensure your compliance...we will take a hostage."

Tendrils of wires suddenly rise into the air, each surrounded by an aura of psychic energy. They lash out so quickly I have no time to react…

And then I'm pushed to the ground by a crashing force. I look up in time to see Siebold wrapped in the wires, struggling to break free.

"Siebold!" I yell, trying to get up, but my legs would not obey me.

"Well, well. Seems we have a volunteer. I was going to go for Ketchum, but you will do nicely."

"Ash! Don't listen to her! Take the fight to them!" Siebold yells, as the tendrils of energy surround him, and he suddenly vanishes.

On screen, he appears behind her, and is instantly grabbed by two grunts.

Mia laughs, "Such drama. Remember, an hour. Or else we will destroy you all." The video cuts, and the theatre immediately erupts into chaos.  
-

All around me, people are rising. They're yelling, crying, worrying about what to do. I just sit there, staring at the council, now one person less. They're debating heatedly.

Two guys next to me converse with each other, one saying that we ought to surrender to Team Rocket, the other arguing we have to fight. The conversation continues, getting increasingly heated, until one eventually snaps and punches the other, leading to a brawl as they being fighting amongst each other.

I don't know what comes over me at that instant, but I stand up and yell at the top of my voice, "LOOK AT YOURSELVES!"

Somehow, my voice carries over the entire amphitheatre, and everyone turns to face me, even the council, the air dead silent. Part of me suddenly regrets my decision, but one look at Ash's determined face and that regret dissipates.

"Look at this!" I point at the previously brawling pair, now having stopped to listen. "Look at what you guys have become! This is what the rebellion has become? Just a title to slap on yourselves? Where is the fire in you guys, the cry for justice, the want for retribution?"

"Who are you to judge us? You're not even a rebel yourself!" A big burly man counters, and around him, his buddies agree in unison.

"You're right. I'm not a rebel like you. I may not have gone through the same training, the same routines or the same experiences as you. But I know if I were you, if I were a rebel, this wouldn't be how I act. When I hear of rebels in a time of war, I think of warriors, of heroes, of harbingers of hope. As a citizen during a time of war, I want to know that even in the darkest of times, there is always a glimmer of hope. I want to feel safe." I turn to the Lumiose citizens, "Am I alone in how I feel?"

They cry out in unison, "No!"

I turn back to the rebels. "You guys are the symbols of hope for the civilians. Yet the minute some person threatens you, some of you—most of you, I dare say—are more inclined to surrender to them. What kind of message does that send out to the citizens of Kalos? Team Rocket is trying to eliminate all good in the world. We don't need to help them with their job."

The theatre is silent, as my words hang in the air. My voice is hoarse, but I push on. I won't allow these rebels to just surrender.

"Regardless of whether you're a rebel or not, you're a citizen of Kalos. We've existed for many centuries, weathering storms big or small. Yet this terrorist group just waltz in here and takes over, and we are not going to do anything about it? Where is your pride? Where is your anger at losing your homes?"

The man who stared me down earlier looks down for a second, before looking back at me. I stare at him, almost daring him to challenge me.

Instead, he applauds me. A slow clap at first, as if hesitant, but slowly gathering in speed and intensity.

And he's not alone. Soon, everyone is following his lead, the once silent air erupting into thunderous applause. Even the committee is on their feet, applauding.

Once the applause dies down, Ash calls for order. The amphitheatre is silent, anticipating what he has to say.

"I don't have much to say, since Serena pretty much spoke my mind. But I will say this, and I say this with confidence: tonight, we will fight. We will fight them to the last, until either victory or defeat has been achieved. Should we lose, there will be no shame in it, for we will have gone down fighting, opposing the evil before us. But should we win the day, today will forever be known as the day we declare in one voice "We will not go quietly into the night! We will not vanish without a fight! We're going to live on! We're going to survive!"" Ash pauses for a while, before continuing, "Today, we fight for justice!"

Once again, the air is filled with cheers and applause. Ash turns to look at me, and he smiles. I smile back.

Once the applause dies down, the gathering turns into a war council. Since the committee was unaware of the scale of the strike force, they come up with a plan to counter any form of terrain.

The meeting lasts no more than 15 minutes before Ash gives everyone their roles and duties. There's one to face an infantry charge, another to deal with aerial threats, and a search and rescue team for Siebold. Another team will stay in the base with the tech crew to detect any underground traps or ambushes.

It takes a while, but everyone is organized into their respective groups.

Except for me and some of the Lumiose citizens—the young and the elderly.

Once everyone is dismissed to prepare, I run up to Ash, who assigned himself to search and rescue.

"Ash, what am I supposed to do?" I ask.

He sighs, "I want you to take care of the Lumiose citizens."

"I want to fight. Lumiose is as much my home as it was theirs." I demand.

"Serena, you just finished recovering from an injury. I don't want you to get hurt…"

"Stop treating me like I'm a useless battler!" I interject, "I'm not some damsel in distress you have to keep protecting! I can fight too!"

"I know you can fight, Serena. I don't doubt your abilities for a second, you know that. I…"

"You what? What's stopping you from letting me battle…"

"I CAN'T LOSE YOU!" He grips both my arms and yells. There is silence between us as I comprehend his words. He takes a deep breath, and in a gentler voice, he whispers to me, "Serena, you're the world to me. You light up my world when I'm in the dark. You make me whole. I…I can't bear to see you hurt, you know? I…I…" He trails off, unable to get the words out.

"You what?" I ask again, this time in a whisper.

He doesn't answer, just gently grips my chin as he gently pushes his lips against mine.

We've kissed before, but never like this. Those kisses were hungry, rushed and more out of pure emotion. This…this wasn't that. It was slow, pleasant and gentle, not lustful but loving, the way one does when they've found their soulmate.

We break away after a few seconds—though it feels like an eternity to me—and he whispers the words, those three words I know he means, but he never truly said:

"I love you."

Nothing else needs to be said between us.

"Ash…I'll stay with the citizens. But promise me, you'll return to me. Not dead." I tell him.

"I promise." He replies, before embracing me, "Thank you."

Once we separate, he begins walking out of the now empty amphitheatre. And there is one more thing I have to tell him.

"Ash!" I call out. He turns to face me.

"I love you."

"I know." He replies.

Then he walks out, into the heat of battle.

 **Woah, this was a doozy to write. I apologize for the really late update—this was originally supposed to be up a week ago—but I ran into some snags along the way, mainly that I didn't like where the original story was going. I had to tweak this chapter a lot, which took forever since I couldn't think of a viable replacement storyline, but eventually I came up with this. Hope you guys enjoyed it, and I hope you guys liked the references I slipped in (I particularly enjoyed the last reference.)**

 **Anyways, I actually have the final chapter of Arc 1 all planned out and ready to be written, and while I can't guarantee this, I will try to get it up before 3** **rd** **January 2016. Also, some not so great news: I'm 18 next year, and in Singapore, that means taking the A level examinations, which is really huge and a huge factor in determining my future. This means I won't have as much time to write stories, and while I probably won't give up on this story, expect later updates (though I'll try for one chapter every two weeks)**

 **Thank you to all who reviewed, favourited or followed this story! You guys are the best fans around. Stay awesome.**

 **And finally, as a gift to you all, and seeing as there is a lot of things that will happen in the finale, here's some snippets you can expect to see in the finale!  
-**

"We've been found out! It's a trap!"

"Time to unleash the beast."

"You! It was you this whole time!"

"I will say it's been nice knowing you, but I'll be lying."

"Jolteon, Thunderbolt!"

"It isn't time yet. We must play our cards right. Or else…" The teenager looks down at the three stones in his hand "All will be lost."  
-

 **Here's a challenge for you guys: I will love to see fan speculation as to what these few lines mean to you. Send me some of your suggestions and I might consider them for the finale. Just note this: both the mole and the teenager's identities have already been determined(Though if you know the proper resources, you probably guessed the teenager's identity.)**

 **As always, please read and review, particularly the last bit. I will be the first to say that my writing has not been the best, and I want to make the finale as brilliant as possible. Don't be afraid to criticise—just make sure it's productive, like if my story sucks, at least tell me why it sucks—and don't be shy to send me suggestions!**

 **Until the next time, RWBYSanctum OUT!**


	6. Arc 1 Finale: War, Love and Loss

**Happy New Year to all of you! 2016 is here, and it is a time of new beginnings. Well, we're certainly doing that here, as we bring an end to Arc 1 of Pokemon: Rise Of Evil and welcome Arc 2! You guys have been awesome so far and I wish I could thank each and every one of you in person for all the support you have shown for this story. Well, times a'wasting! It is time, ladies and gentlemen, to bring an end to Arc 1. It is my honour to present to you:**

 **Chapter 5 (Arc Finale)**

 **A/N: This story is written from 3 different perspectives, for reasons which the story will explain. I must warn you, this story contains character death, so viewer discretion is advised.**

 _Act 1: Pre_

"No. Absolutely not."

"There's no choice in the matter, Clemont. I'm going."

"There is a choice and I'm making it for you! You're way too young and have too little battle experience!"

I sigh in frustration. Of all the times Clemont chooses to be my big brother and be protective, he chooses the one time I wish he wouldn't.

"Big brother, I'll be safe. I know what I'm doing."

"No, you don't! You honestly believe that you are ready to take on Team Rocket?"

I feel my anger rising, bubbling to the surface, but I force it down. I need to convince Clemont that I'm ready.

"Clemont…"

"No. That is final. I am not letting you out there into the battlefield!"

"And why not?" I half-yell, my anger reaching its breaking point.

"Because you're too young!"

"Stop treating me like I'm a child!" I yell, the dam bursting. I don't care that there are now about a hundred eyes staring at me and my brother. I don't care about the glares I'm getting from some soldiers. All I can think of right now is putting my point across.

"I'm 15, Clemont! I can make my own decisions! Stop treating me like I'm still 8!"

Clemont is speechless. He's seen me lose my temper before—sometimes on him—but he has never seen me this furious before.

"I'm fighting in this whether you like it or not, so either get out of my way, or I'll set Herdier on you." I demand. He stares me down for a minute, then sighs and steps out of my way.

"Thank you." I tell him, as I prepare to walk away.

"Bonnie."

Maybe it's the defeated tone in his voice, or maybe I feel bad for yelling at him, but I turn back to face him.

"I promised Dad I'll keep you safe."

And just like that, I'm floored.

Our dad had been one of the first people to volunteer for the rebellion when it first started. He had been involved in a conflict in Unova, during what we call the Battle of Castelia City. It had ended in a rebel slaughter, and our dad was amongst the casualties.

It had been rough on both of us, but more so for Clemont, who never did get that approval he wanted from Dad.

I want to hug him, to listen to him, to move away from the door and just hang back with the Lumiose citizens, just to placate him. But I steel myself. I can't let this pass. Team Rocket will pay for everything they have done.

"You forgot something, Clemont," I told him, turning away from him. "This is war. No one is safe."

And with that, I walk out the door, ready for combat.  
-

"Give me an update on the strike force."

"Sir…"

"Grendel, it's Ash, remember? No need for titles here." I remind the young technician.

"Right, sorry…Ash." I can see that it's going to take some time before he used to it.

"Anyways," he continues, "it seems they've only got a major ground strike force. I sense large enemy movement of 6, possibly 8, hundred troops. Their only aerial strike force is a lone mothership. And it's huge."

The technician brings up a schematic. It showcases a ship the size of a Wailord. Nothing too overly menacing, just looks like a standard aerial command centre.

"Alright, Siebold's probably on that ship, so we'll need to infiltrate it. Any entry points?" I ask.

"There." Ruby points to a point on the schematic, somewhere near the top of the ship. "It isn't guarded, and it looks like we could blow a hole right through it."

"Won't that bring the ship down though?" One of the generals—Barnes—speaks up.

"No, it won't." Another general—Cress—speaks up. Cress was one of the veterans, having seen action in Hoenn and Unova, particularly in hot battles like the Battle of Lilicove. "Those ships have high-powered engines tucked way deep in there. A hole in the roof won't affect them."

"Alright, we have our entry strategy. Once we get in and get Siebold, we'll move out so that the aerial team can bring it down." I state.

"Hold up, Ash. That might not be the safest option." Cress states. Confused, I ask him, "What do you mean? We got a point that no one can detect…"

"No, not the entry strategy. I mean we may not have time for waiting for the strike team. Take a look at these." He points to cannon-like objects scattered around the base of the ship.

"Those aren't normal cannons. They've been modified. The cannon's hole is a lot larger, and they're all at the base of the ship. They're Forretress Cannons." He explains.

I suck in a breath. Forretress Cannons were something developed by Team Rocket. Dropping bombs on cities caused massive amounts of damage on their own, but someone at Team Rocket apparently found out that if you fired a Forretress at high velocity, and ordered them to use Selfdestruct on a pre-set timer, you basically had the equivalent of a nuke, just with no radiation.

"There are so many of them…" Ruby gasps.

"We can't risk our men on the ground taking too much of that. They'll be wiped out." Cress states.

"So our options are to bring the ship down, then rescue Siebold…" Lysandre suggests.

"Not an option. If we bring the ship down, we risk killing Siebold. I'm not risking that." I counter immediately.

"Or we infiltrate the ship, then split into two teams, one to find Siebold, and the other to blow this ship out of the air." Barnes states.

I contemplate on both choices for a minute before speaking.

"Alright, both options aren't optimum, but they're the best we've got. Ruby, Lysandre, Cress, you're with me. We're going after Siebold. The rest of you, set the charges. Wait for my call, then detonate. All clear?"

There is a resounding yes. I turn to Ruby.

"Alright then, let's go blow up an airship."  
-

 _Act 2: Contact_

"Keep at it, people! We're almost there!"

Once the conflict started, it was ugly. The Team Rocket troops had come out from the trees, hoping to attack us with superior numbers.

They obviously didn't expect us to be armed and dangerous.

Despite having fewer troops, we easily pushed the Grunts back. It was pathetically easy; most of the Grunts were using Zubats and Koffings, with a few packing Raticates.

Seriously?

It had been too easy to push them back, and just as quickly as they had come, they were running from us, fleeing back into the woods around us. We gave chase, pushing them back even further.

Finally, the Grunts disappeared out of sight, running so deep into the woods we didn't follow them. Once they were all gone, the air erupted into loud cheers and victory celebrations.

"We did it!"

"Take that, you punks!"

There was so much yelling I had to step away from the group or my ears would burst. I found a nice isolated spot and sat down to take a breather. Though I was fitter than Clemont, we had gone pretty far into the woods, so I was exhausted. But it wasn't just that that was weighing me down. I had the nagging suspicion that something wasn't right.

It had been far too easy. Sure, this wasn't the full force of the Team Rocket army, but still, you would expect something more than bats and rats. And considering the woman's—Mia's—ultimatum was to destroy us all, it wouldn't make much sense to send such a weak force to take the base.

Something wasn't right.

 _Come on, Bonnie, celebrate! You guys won! Who cares if it was easy?_

I take a deep breath and stand up, moving to rejoin the rebels. True, it was suspiciously easy, but hey, we still won, right? Maybe I was overreacting.

Yep, the rebels were still cheering and celebrating, yelling loudly into the sky in joy when I came back. There was one who looked like he was yelling so loudly, he was clawing at his throat for air.

Wait…what?

The rebel suddenly pitches forward, hands still clawing at his neck. It is then that we see the shiv that was embedded in his throat. The rebels nearest to him stop laughing, and it takes a while before the others see it. The laughter stops abruptly, as the air becomes tense with anticipation.

And then another rebel cries out, falling face forward, a shiv in his back.

"Alright, lads! Get them!" The voice comes from out of nowhere. We're immediately at attention, waiting for an attack.

But when it comes, when the Team Rocket forces appear out of thin air right in front of us, we are unprepared. The air fills with the sounds of explosions and death cries.

"We've been found out! It's a trap!" someone cries out.

And now, it is our turn to flee.  
-

"Coming into the drop zone. Red, you set?" I have to yell to be heard over the winds.

"Clear!" The reply comes.

"Flames?"

"Clear!"

"Cress?"

"Clear."

"Alright then, prepare for landing."

A minute later, we are all standing on the roof, our Pokemon flying just above us. Barnes sets a charge against the panel Ruby mentioned.

"Get clear!" he yells, and we scram. An explosion is heard, and when we near the panel, it's gone, replaced with a hole.

"Alright, we're going in." I tell Ruby, who relays the order to Lysandre and Cress.

When all of us are inside the airship, Cress pulls out a blueprint.

"Tech managed to find a copy of these." He replies when he sees my enquiring look. He sets in on the floor, and we clamour around him.

"Alright, we're here, to the top left of the airship," He points to the location, before continuing, "The holding cells are three floors below us, towards the centre of the ship, and the control centre is just one floor below, near the centres." He points to each location as he brings them up.

"The engine rooms are trickier. They're 4 floors below us, but the only way to access them is through the control centre. You can bet it's heavily guarded, so don't let your guard down." He tells the demo crew.

"Siebold's most probably in the holding cells, but I remember one of my guys who escaped from this kind of ship before. He told me that he was held in the control room. Seems they've got some kind of cell there."

"So we'll split into two groups. Ruby and I will take the control centre. You and Lysandre take the holding cells." I tell him.

"Alright, that'll do." He replies, before addressing the demo team, "The ship will go down when we give the order, which is when we've gotten Siebold. The explosives are just powerful enough to blow the engines out, but we'll need time to get out. Do not detonate until either Ash or me gives the order."

"Yes sir!" they chorus.

"Alright then." He turns to us all, "Good luck, all of you."

Then we separate, until it's just me and Ruby left in the corridor.

"Soooo…just like last time?" Ruby grins, and I can't help but smile at the memory of the last time we took down an airship like this. That time, we were the demo team.

"Well, take away the explosives, and yes." I reply, and we make our way towards the control centre.

The demo team had gone ahead of us, so we followed their footsteps and the trail markers—tiny sticky marbles—that they had left behind.

The mic crackles to life so suddenly I jump.

"Umm…sir?"

"What is it, Barnes?"

"We've got eyes on Siebold." The reply comes.

"Alright, thanks, Barnes." I'm holding down my excitement as I ask, "Have you guys been spotted?"

"Pretty weird, sir. There's nobody in here."

I hesitate. That was weird, really weird.

"Stay on your guard. Remember your plan. Watch out. This could be a trap." I advise.

"Roger that. Barnes out." The link is terminated.

"Trap?" Ruby asks.

"Most probably. Stay on your guard." I tell her, before we continue to move. I open a channel to Cress.

"Cress, demo team found Siebold up in the control room."

"Roger that. We're coming up. Don't wait on us." The link is terminated.

It takes a while for us to reach the control room. It was—not surprisingly—designed much like a control centre. Except most control centres are not usually this empty, and don't have Siebold being held in bonds in the center of the room.

"Siebold!" I run up to him. Save for some bruises on his face, he's fine.

"Ketchum." He states weakly.

"Hang on, I'll get you out of there." I tell him, before moving to the control panel next to it. It takes some trial and error, but I get lucky on the third button. The bonds holding Siebold release, and he falls to the ground. Ruby and I are at his side, supporting him.

"You…didn't surrender?" Siebold asks weakly.

"Evidently." I reply.

"Thank Arceus. You do have some brains in you, Ketchum." Siebold smiles.

"Not enough."

I feel a chill ripple down my spine as I turn around to see the cloaked woman appear from behind a false wall.

"Well, well. I didn't think you would come." Mia chuckles. "You're either really brave or stupid to come here."

"It's over, Mia. Your troops are being overrun by us. We're bringing this ship down. Surrender now, and nothing too harsh will come to you." Ruby warns.

There is a palpable silence. Then Mia does the weirdest thing possible.

She laughs. A silent giggle, that erupts into full blown evil laughter.

"You think it's over? You actually think you've won?" She cackles, "No, my dear Miss Rose, this has just begun. Didn't you ever notice that there was literally nobody on this ship but me?"

Her words make me pause. It's true—we hadn't been attacked by any grunts while on the ship. Even if we had taken a safer route, there should been at least a few we would have encountered. So…

"Where are they?" I ask menacingly.

Mia simply smiles, "Oh, don't worry about them. They've already caused enough panic down below."

Panic and fear hit me the same time I fully comprehend what she is saying.

"The troops! The ground troops! It was an ambush this whole time!" Ruby realizes this a few seconds later, but she can't disguise the horror in her voice.

"Indeed. But there is something still missing." Mia presses a finger to her ear, "Launch."

The muffled sounds of cannons echoes into the control centre, and my heart almost stops.

"No. Nonononono…" I can't stop my worry from projecting outwards.

"Welcome to the end of the Rebellion, Mr Ketchum." Mia smirks.

"Sir? Sir? The charges are set. We've cleared out of the area. What are your orders?" The voice of Barnes echoes through my earpiece.

I have no hesitation when I bark, "Blow it."

"Sir, you're still…"

"Do it now! That's an order!" I bark again.

"Who are you talking to?" Mia is suddenly on the alert. She takes a step towards me.

And the ship fills with the sound of explosions.  
-

"Thank you, dearest." The old lady smiles at me as I hand her another water bottle.

"No problem, miss." I smile at her before walking away. Around me, several other nurses and volunteers are talking and giving water or food to the Lumiose citizens. I spot Lee in the midst of it, and she waves to me. I'm about to go over to talk to her, when I catch the eye of someone.

I stop in my tracks as I try to recall where I have seen this man. It takes me a moment, but I remember.

"You're the storekeeper I met at the markets!"

The old man smiles genially at me. "Ah, I'm pleased you remember me, Miss Yvonne. Not many do."

I smile, "Of course I remember you. You helped me with my problems when I first met you."

"Ah yes, I do recall giving advice, though I am unclear if it provided any dividends." He replies.

"It certainly did." I smile, but it is a little forced, as if something is holding it back.

"Ah, Miss Yvonne, you are troubled by something."

"No." I immediately deny. "It's nothing, really."

"I see. May I ask, does your issue revolve around what we talked about last?"

Part of me is reluctant to talk to him, but a part of me wants me to open up to him, to see if he can offer any words of wisdom for me.

"I sense your reluctance to talk. Perhaps if I could assist you with this question: why are you here?"

The question catches me off guard. "What?"

"Perhaps that was not the best phrasing. I wonder why you, a fighter, are here helping to take care of civilians when you should be fighting." He prompts.

"Because Ash told me to." I reply. It sounds like a stupid answer, but it is the truth.

"Ah, and here we begin to get to the rub. Tell me, why do you feel obligated to listen to him?"

I contemplate for a while, before stating what comes to my mind first.

"I guess, I want him to be happy. I want to make sure that he knows I'm safe."

"And therein lies the problem. You feel obligated to please him, even at the cost of your own satisfaction." He delivers.

"What?"

"Miss Yvonne, love goes two ways. When two people enter into a relationship, they are both equal partners in it—as in, each must contribute their fair share to the relationship for it to succeed. However, one party often feels the need to supplement more on their part, in order to satisfy the other party. While there is no outright problem with this, it is perhaps not the healthiest of relationships. A relationship is a bond shared between two people, each having to contribute their fair share to maintain balance."

"Everything in the universe is balanced. When half the world bathes in sunlight, another faces its nighttime. Every Pokemon type has a type disadvantage. Balance, Miss Yvonne, keeps the universe flowing smoothly."

"I…I think I understand." I reply.

"While a relationship sometimes involves giving more, ultimately it must remain balanced. And so must your mind. It is perfectly acceptable to please others, but when we willingly do so at the cost of what we want, then that is not balance."

I process his words. It takes a moment before I fully understand where he's coming from.

"I understand. Thank you." I stand up and break into a run.

"Where are you going?" Lee asks me.

"I'm going to fight."

"Ash won't like that."

"He will. I'll make sure of it." I race off to my dorm. Picking up my Pokeballs, I prepare to step outside.

The first thing I see is an airship falling out of the sky.

Without waiting, I race towards the crash site.  
-

 _Act 3: Loss_

I was wrong. I was so wrong. I was unprepared.

I was totally unprepared for this.

The tables turned so fast my brain had no time to register what was going on. All I knew was that I had to run, or I was dead.

All around me, rebels were either dying or running. The mothership had started firing at us. I had no time to see what they were firing, but it could not be good.

The sound of explosions intermixed with the sound of death, and the eruption of sound was too much for me to take. But I had to keep running. I had to survive.

I didn't see the corpse in front of me. In fact, I didn't even know it was there until my foot struck it and I fell over.

Disoriented, I tried to pick myself up, but a heavy boot came thudding down on my chest, hard.

All the air whooshed out of my lungs as pain replaced it. Hot, agonizing pain rippled through my body. The lack of air made me more light-headed, and I almost passed out.

Eventually, the cloud of pain diminished, and I was staring into the eyes of a Grunt. I tried to scream, but he immediately covered my mouth.

"Well, well, looks like my lucky day." He grins at me lecherously, and I squirm, trying to get away, but I can't. His boot has me held down, and I'm still exhausted, so there is nothing I can do but watch helplessly as he whips out his Pokeball.

"Little young, but I've done far younger than you."

I close my eyes, wishing that this was all a dream, that I would wake up and be on my bed at home in Lumiose. But deep down, I know this is my reality.

Something drips onto my face, and I open my eyes slowly.

It's blood.

Where the Grunt's chest was, there now lay a giant hole. The Grunt stood upright for a moment, before falling to his knees, and then flat on the ground.

Behind him stood my brother, his Clemontic arm extended outwards in a fist.

"Don't touch my sister." He deadpans.

At this point, I forget all my anger towards him, all the frustrations I have towards him. All I want is to run up to him and hug him, to let him comfort me.

I'm standing up, I'm running, I'm exclaiming his name in happiness, tears of joy in my eyes…

Then he yells, "Bonnie, go away!"

In an instant, his Clemontic arm shoot outwards, hand opened up. It grabs my arm and tosses me unceremoniously to one side, and for the second time in less than 5 minutes, I'm floored.

Almost instantly, a bright light fills the space we're in, and I shield my eyes from it. The light is so bright it burns, and I feel some parts of my body flare up in pain, in agony, and I wish over and over again that this will end…

As quickly as it comes, the light fades. I tentatively open my eyes, then they widen as I register what I see.

A crater the size of a manhole appeared in the centre of the clearing, spanning a few feet wide. My brother is nowhere to be seen.

A chill passes through my spine, as if something bad has happened and I need to know what happened. Unconsciously, I run—apart from some burns of my arms, I'm fine—towards the crater.

It isn't very deep, not much deeper than a sandbox. But that does not interest me.

Because I am staring at my brother's unmoving body.

I move towards it, each step adding dread to my heart.

"Clemont!" I yell as I run.

His body is almost charred beyond recognition. He had evidently been really near whatever hit us.

"Clemont!" I cradle his head, the tears streaming from my face freely. "Clemont, talk to me, please!"

His eyes open halfway, and they flutter. "Bonnie…" It's almost a whisper I can barely hear it.

"Clemont, you're gonna be ok. I'm going to get you medical attention. Just stay with me, ok? Please?" I try to soothe him, even though I know it's a lost cause.

He smiles at me. It's a weak smile, but it's a smile.

"Be good." He whispers.

Then his eyes close, and he doesn't stir.

At this point, I lost it. I let out a cry, a cry of anguish, a cry of sadness. It echoes through the clearing, as if the trees share my anguish, my sadness, my guilt…

I bury my face in my brother's chest, the tears never stopping, and I tune out the sounds of explosions in the distance, and focus the attention on my brother. My brother, who will never wake me up again with the smell of pancakes. My brother, who will never know invent another crazy contraption. My brother, whose last act was to sacrifice himself for me.

My brother, the irritating yet awesome Clemont Citron, is dead.  
-

Things happen really quickly that I barely recall them.

The ship lurches to one side, and we're thrown against the wall. I remember pain in my shoulder, a dull throbbing pain.

I vaguely recall seeing Lysandre and Cress burst through the door.

My last thought is "I'm sorry, Serena."

Then…impact.

 _Act 4: Climax_

White. That is all I see as I open my eyes. It takes a second, but my eyes eventually refocus, and the white turns red.

The wreckage of the vessel is alight with flames that dance across the fuselage. I push myself up to see that I'm lying on a piece of metal. Miraculously, it hasn't caught fire yet.

I push myself off the metal, tumbling down its slight incline onto the soil. I force myself to my knees as I survey the wreckage for survivors.

"Ruby?" I call out. No response. I make my way around the wreckage of the fuselage, waiting for a response. "Lysandre? Cress? Siebold?" I call out, and again no reply.

Then I see it. My first instinct is to hurl as I see what has happened to Mia Wulfried.

Unfortunately for her, she hadn't made it. She probably survived the first stab through the stomach. She definitely did not survive the stab in the head.

She lay at an almost vertical incline, her stomach and head run through by metal stakes—part of the ship must have broken up on impact. Despite everything, I feel sorry for her. She didn't deserve this.

The pain hits me so suddenly it takes me a moment to realize what happened, by which time I was flat on the ground, completely winded and staring into the face of a gun.

And standing over me was Siebold.

"You ruined everything!" he yelled. "This wasn't how it was supposed to go, and it's all because of you!"

My mind is reeling. This entire time? All this time, it was right under my nose. All along…

"You! It was you this whole time!" I shout, my voice filled with anger and betrayal. I try to sit up, but Siebold whips me in the side of my head with the gun.

"Everything was perfect until you showed up!" He yells. I'm too disoriented to say anything at the moment.

He points the gun at me. "I will make this painful. I will shoot you through the leg first. Then the stomach. Let your gastric acids dissolve your organs from the inside. Then at the moment that you beg for the mercy of death, I will shoot you in your head. Consider that a debt paid for rescuing me."

"Goodbye, Ash Ketchum."

"Mystical Fire!"  
-

The aircraft had landed someplace off the site of battle, so it was pretty smooth sailing for me to reach the wreckage.

It took me a few seconds to realize that the chances of surviving the crash were really low.

 _Please, please don't let Ash be on that plane._

I pull my Pokeball. "Delphox, come on out!" My partner and best friend materializes.

"Delphox, I need you to sense if there are survivors around." I command.

"Del!" Delphox closes her eyes. A few moments later, she opens them sharply.

"Del!" she cries before running off. I follow her.

As we get close, I hear something. It sounds like…shouting.

"You ruined everything!" That voice belongs to Siebold. So he was alive! But what was ruined? Curiosity got the better of me as I crept along the fuselage.

"You! It was you all along!" I stop. That…that was Ash's voice.

I hear a sound like a crack, and a few moments later, Siebold's voice echoes, "Everything was fine until you showed up!"

Something was definitely wrong. I quickly made my way towards the sound of the voices, and as I near the location, what I hear makes my blood go cold.

"I will make this painful. I will shoot you through the leg first. Then the stomach. Let your gastric acids dissolve your organs from the inside. Then at the moment that you beg for the mercy of death, I will shoot you in your head. Consider that a debt paid for rescuing me."

I make a split second decision. I step out of my hiding place, Delphox following me.

"Goodbye, Ash Ketchum."

"Delphox, Mystical Fire!" I command. Delphox complies, forming a ring of fire and blowing through it. A stream of fire shoots out towards Siebold.

Suddenly, something appears out of nowhere in front of Siebold. It's a turtle shell. The stream of fire bounces off of it without any damage.

Siebold's Blastoise then pops out of its shell and fires two jets of water from its pumps. Delphox is hit so hard it flies away, crying in pain.

"Delphox!" I cry out. I move to run towards it, but Siebold cries out, "Slowking, Disable!"

I come to a stop. Try as I might, I am rooted to the spot. I can't even move my head.

"Leave her alone!" I hear Ash cry out. Siebold orders, "Slowking, Psychic!"

A moment of silence ensues, then I feel myself being turned around to face Siebold. I see Ash encased in an aura of psychic energy. I want to call out to him, but my voice doesn't work.

Ash and I are brought side by side, facing Siebold. His Blastoise makes his way to his side.

"You two have caused so much trouble to me. Believe me when I say I take immense pleasure in doing this." He tells us. "Blastoise."

His Blastoise points its twin cannons at us, one trained on each of us.

"I will say it's been nice knowing you, but I'll be lying." He tells us. "Blastoise…"

A sudden flash of blinding light blinds us all. When it settles, however, there is nothing new.

"I do not know what that was, but no matter. Your execution is at hand." Siebold smiles cruelly at us.

"Blastoise, Hydro Cannon."  
-

Till today, I can honestly say what happened next was a miracle.

I saw twin jets of water pump out of Blastoise's cannons, and I braced myself for the end…

Until the water jets converged onto one another and stopped in midair.

I watched in wonder as the water jets splashed onto one another, and from the jets, a Vaporeon appeared, dispersing the jets as it came out.

"What is this?" Siebold demands. "Blastoise, Skull Bash!"

The Vaporeon ducks away as Siebold's Blastoise tries to headbutt it. The Blastoise tries again, and Vaporeon ducks away again.

"I think it's time we end this." Someone's voice—a foreign one, not one I recognize—sounds from the distance.

Suddenly, a flash of light encases the Vaporeon, enveloping it. It's body shape changes, much like evolution, developing spikes around its body.

And suddenly, where the Vaporeon once stood was a Jolteon.

"Jolteon, Thunderbolt!" The mysterious trainer yelled.

I've seen some powerful Thunderbolt attacks in battle, but never before had I seen something of this magnitude. A jagged bolt of lightning split the skies and struck Blastoise, Siebold and Slowking. Siebold barely had time to scream.

The psychic aura around Serena and I falls away, and we are suddenly able to move again. I watch as Siebold—or what was left of him—fell to his knees before falling face first to the ground.

"That was…disturbing." I comment.

The Jolteon turns to us and nods, before running off to its master. When I turn, both Pokemon and trainer are gone.

"Ash?"

"Yeah, Serena?"

"Is it…is it over?"

I embrace her.

"Yes. It's over."  
-

 _Epilogue Part 1_

"Today is a day we will remember for as long as we live."

The rebels sat in the amphitheatre, listening as Diantha spoke to the assembly.

"Today is a day for celebration. We have claimed a vital victory over Team Rocket, against all odds. That is a feat worth celebrating."

Shortly after the ship went down, the Team Rocket Grunts were being pushed back again by revitalised rebels led by Diantha, who had arrived just minutes prior and turned the tide of battle. The rebels, seeing their champion and leader return, quickly regrouped and attacked, eventually claiming victory.

"Yet today is also a day of mourning. While the result was in our favour, it came at a cost. Over 200 rebels lost their lives today in battle, and we will mourn them."

The hall is filled with silence.

"We are also aware of the betrayal that we suffered. Many of us looked to Siebold as a hero, someone to look up to, and he turned that around and betrayed us."

Silence.

"Our brothers and sisters died for the rebellion, to ensure its survival, so that we give people hope. We will honour them, and fight on to ensure they did not die in vain. We are a symbol of hope for the people of Kalos, and we will continue to be that. We are the light in the darkness, and we will extinguish the darkness that is Team Rocket!"

The hall erupts into a chorus of determined "Ayes!"

"There are some things, however, that will need to be changed. As few probably know, I spent the majority of the last two days hunting down our traitor, to no avail. In my absence, I granted the leadership title to Ash Ketchum, whom I believe we can agree is a much respected person."

Ayes echo across the hall again.

"With my return, it would seem right that I retain that position of leadership. However, I believe that in my absence, somebody else stepped up, and I am of the opinion that this person deserves the title in place of me."

The hall is littered with pockets of small conversation. This was certainly new, and everyone wondered who the new leader would be.

"I am privileged to announce that the second in command, next to Ash Ketchum, is Serena Yvonne."

Serena walks onto the stage, and the hall erupts into applause. Serena shakes hands with Diantha, who smiles at her warmly.

"Make the Rebellion proud." She whispers.

"I will." Serena replies. She walks down from the stage, and Diantha turns back to the microphone.

"You have done a great deed for Kalos. I hope that we will continue to do so. Thank you all."  
-

The sun cast a bright orange glow on the horizon, filling the land of Kalos with the last rays of sunlight. Atop a hill, Serena Yvonne looked out into the sunset.

"Beautiful, isn't it?"

Serena smiles.

"Definitely. One thing I've always loved about Kalos is how many spots there are to watch this. I never grow tired of watching the sun set." She turns around to face Ash.

"I wasn't talking about the sunset." Ash grins. Serena blushes as she catches his meaning, but decides to be a bit more playful.

"Well, Mr Ketchum, may I ask what, or whom, you're referring to?"

He smiles. "This person, she's nice, sweet and a tough girl when you mess with her. She has hair that is the lightest shade of brown, and she smells of lemons and grass." He stepped closer to her.

"Pray tell, would this girl happen to be someone I know?" She steps ever closer.

"Oh, you'll definitely know her." He puts his hands on her hips.

"Is it me?" She wraps her arms around him.

"Is it that obvious?" He leans in.

"Yes." She breathes, and closes the gap between their lips.

They break apart reluctantly, still gazing into each other's eyes and seeing the love that blazes like a fire in the other's eyes.

"Serena, I can't imagine a world without you. I love you more than you could ever imagine, and there's no other woman on this planet that I could ever fathom spending the rest of my life with. Through everything, through thick and thin... it's always been you and only you that I can go to for the right motivation." ( **A/N: Credits to DarkSlash09 who came up with this phrase. I acknowledge it's unoriginal and hope DarkSlash09 doesn't kill me for this)**

"In these dark times, I worry that something might go wrong, and something bad happens to us. But if I die, I want to die knowing I've lived life fully, and without regrets."

"I want that, too, Ash." She whispers, tense with anticipation. She hopes that this is real, that this is reality, because as impractical as it may be, she wants this, too…

"Serena Yvonne," Ash reaches into his pocket, and gets down on one knee. "Will you marry me?"

Even though she saw it coming, it's still a shock to her. She recovers quickly, however, and simply kisses him again.

When she breaks away, she whispers, "A thousand times, yes. I will."  
-

 _Epilogue Part 2_

The boy stood still, watching the scene unfold between the two lovers. He felt happy for them. After everything they had been through, a bit of happiness was needed in their lives.

"Where are you?" His Pokegear squawks.

"I'm in the mountains. The two of them are here."

"You've been watching them make out?"

"No, I was following them when they happened to be making out."

A deep sigh sounds. "Whatever, just get yourself back to base. And don't be caught."

The boy sighs. Some things just never changed. He turns to his Vaporeon.

"Come on, boy. I'll race you." He pulls out a yellow shard, and Vaporeon is enveloped in light. When it disappears, a Jolteon is there.

"Come on, boy." The trainer pulls a bike out of his bag and unfolds it. "Let's go."

And the boy takes off, red cap firmly on his head, his jacket billowing with the wind.

 **Well, guys, that's it. I know this is probably not very well written, but I tried. I know there are some gripes some of you may have, so I'll address them with this simple statement: If something here doesn't make sense, like Vaporeon materializing from water, read Pokemon Adventures. I draw a lot of inspiration from there.**

 **Now for the slightly sad part. Due to some major problems with content, and the fact that I am actually questioning my original storyline, this story will take a backseat for about a month. Arc 2 will begin probably in early to mid February. However, I won't stop writing. I'm currently writing a RWBY fanfiction called RWBY: Fall, that I hope I can post soon. It is a oneshot prequel to another RWBY story I will write in the future, RWBY: Storm of Flames and Darkness. So look out for those!**

 **The marriage part was a debatable issue. I know it's completely impractical to do this, but I thought about it, and my final decision was to add it in. One reason being I felt like Ash and Serena have been rather separate this story; they know they love each other, yet apart from kissing, there isn't a lot of moments between them. This affirms their relationship to me, and it acts as a Amourshipping fluff.**

 **Thank you all for reading this and taking the time to actually read it to the end. You guys are great and I hope you guys will help continue with your support. As always, please read and review, and I hope you guys enjoyed the story. RWBYSanctum OUT!**


	7. Arc 2 Chapter 1: New Beginnings

**Well, I'm finally back!**

 **I'm really sorry about the delay to the story and for Arc 2, but I have a few reasons:**

 **1)Life. I'm sorry guys, but I'm 18 years old and have to sit for some major exams at the end of the year, so I've been bogged down by work and lots of other crap. The few free times I have, I've been watching RWBY (got hooked), playing Hearthstone (been hooked) and watching the Japanese dub of X and Y (working on it) as well as Attack on Titan (I CAN'T BELIEVE I HAVEN'T SEEN IT BEFORE). While I have written some RWBY fanfics in the last few months (Biting The Dust and Remnants of Ourselves), overall, I've been very busy with this.**

 **2)Writer's Block. Major, major writer's block and the desire for variation. I've had the plans for Rise of Evil since I started writing this fic, but just like Biting The Dust, I often change my plans to suit the story better, and I've been trying to draw inspiration from XYZ to modify my plans. This results in a lot of problems when it comes to writing.**

 **3)Computer issues. So my anti-virus crashed a few months back and I had to delete my files, meaning I pretty much started from Ground Zero.**

 **But enough excuses! I'm here with the first instalment of the 2** **nd** **Arc!**

 **Now, just some notes. I edited this a lot since the original draft, and I changed one of my rules, that being I wouldn't incorporate too many legendaries into the mix and the only two I had planned were Genesect and Mewtwo. However, I've been inspired to change that and I will add another two more legendaries into the mix. But don't worry, they won't overtly affect too much of the story (I hope). Also, Arc 2 focuses a lot on action sequences, so forgive me if they aren't up to scratch—my action writing skills aren't great. Also, because I've seen way too much XYZ in Japanese, I might start using the Japanese names. Apologies for that.**

 **Enough chatter! Let's get with it!**

Chapter 1: New Beginnings, New Battles

"Not too sure how long they can hold out for, but we're positive we can beat them. We have them surrounded."

"Great job. Keep pushing forward. We need Celestic and Solaceon if we want to seal off Hearthome and keep them pinned in Veilstone." Cynthia told the scout.

"Understood!" The scout saluted, then exited the room.

"I take it that the reclamation of Sinnoh is going smoothly?" Cynthia turned back to the monitors that filled the room, each displaying a face that she recognized and knew personally. The question had come from one of the screens on her right, and she turned to face it, looking into the face of a familiar 18 year old male.

"Partly, Ash. We've suffered some defeats in Sunnyshore and Veilstone, but we've successfully retaken Oreburgh and Snowpoint. We've been focusing on Celestic and Solaceon to cut off their supply lines between Eterna and Veilstone, and then we're moving to Hearthome after that." Cynthia reported. It felt strange having to give such reports to an 18-year-old, but if that 18-year-old was Ash Ketchum, she had no qualms in doing so; she'd seen first-hand what he could do.

"In other words, you guys are lagging behind a lot of the other regions." Cynthia frowned. The appointment of Gary Oak as a Kanto rebellion leader always struck her as odd. While Gary was a good trainer—one of the few who, at his best, could triumph over even the best of them—his attitude and cockiness didn't make him a good fit for a leader, and had more often than not irritated the other leaders.

Sure enough, Iris of the Unova region piped up, her face red with anger, "At least she's trying, Gary! What have you guys done besides capture the Sevii Islands?"

"Considering that one of those islands was a Rocket stronghold and we took it out with ease, I'd say we've done a lot more than Cynthia here has."

Iris looked to argue, but Ash uttered a single word: "Enough."

Iris stared at him in confusion, "You…you support what he says?"

"I neither support it nor deny it. Look guys, Gary is right to an extent. Only Kalos and Hoenn can say they've beaten a Rocket stronghold and recaptured it."

Gary smiled smugly.

"But," Gary's smile dipped, "That doesn't mean we go around dismissing everything the other regions have done. We've all done our part to try to reclaim our homes, and it doesn't matter how many strongholds we seize, or how many towns we seize. What matters is that at the end of the day, we've all reclaimed our lands. No contribution is smaller or less significant than another."

Gary glared at Ash's stoic face, before heaving a big sigh. "Sorry, Cynthia." He muttered.

"Anything else, Cynthia? Do you require assistance in any location?" This from Steven Stone, the unanimous choice as one of Hoenn's leaders. He was a legend both on and off the field of battle, great with people management and stirring the morale of his troops, and an absolute beast on the battlefield. The legend went that he had single-handedly taken down Sird and Orm of the Rocket Beasts without batting an eye during the reclamation of Lilycove, and looking at him, it wasn't too hard to believe.

"No, I don't think so. We seem to have an advantage right now, though it might not last."

"Still, I think we should put a unit on standby. In case things go south too fast, we can supply some reinforcements and supplies quickly."

May Maple. One of the finest Pokemon Coordinators the Hoenn region—and possibly the greater Pokemon world—had raised and developed. At first, she seemed an odd choice as leader; while she had battle experience, it paled in comparison to many others. However, her fierce determination and tactical awareness had shone through quickly, and she became revered amongst the people of Hoenn.

"That's kind of you, May, but can you spare the resources? I know the takeover on your side is going pretty smoothly but…"

"We can spare a few troops. Some of the newcomers are just itching to get into action and out of Hoenn. They're raw, but they're good, and I think they might relish the experience." This from Steven.

"And Johto can spare some others if need be." Jasmine, one of the kindest Gym Leaders in all of the Pokemon world. That kindness, however, masked a steely determination that matched her Steel-type arsenal. Along with Claire, the Johto region had claimed major battles in a short period of time, having one of the most successful crusades amongst the 6 regions.

"That's kind of you all, thank you." And Cynthia meant it.

"Now then. Dawn, do you have anything else to add?" Ash asked.

"Nothing else. Cynthia pretty much covered everything." Dawn Berlitz, Cynthia's partner and the second leader to Sinnoh, replied.

"Alright then. That should conclude today's meeting. Good luck to you all, and let's finish this."

Everyone nodded their assent, and one by one the video screens fizzled out.  
-

Ash sat down on the steps, mentally exhausted. It hadn't been easy going through strategies and discussions with the leaders of the rebellion, but it had to be done. Only when they were all united in success could Team Rocket fall.

That didn't make his migraines and exhaustion any better though.

Serena offered him a water bottle. "Drink. You haven't drunk anything since the start of the conference."

Ash graciously accepted the bottle from her and took a long drink, letting the cold water drip down his chin and down his neck. It was sweltering in the room, a side effect of having so many electronics packed inside, and the cold water provided some reprieve from it.

"Any news from the outside?" He asked as he lowered the bottle. Serena often missed out on the meetings, feeling that she wouldn't be able to contribute much, especially considering she had only been leader for a month. It wasn't a sentiment shared by Ash, but he had let her go with it, and the other leaders were fine with the arrangement.

Plus, Serena liked to mingle with the troops and scientists, and often could provide him with reports of recent events while he was communicating with the other leaders, so he was always in the loop.

"Some good and some bad, with one peculiar one." Serena responded.

"Give me the good first." Ash had learned that while the Kalosian scientists and scouts were enthusiastic, they could be rather paranoid, and sometimes the 'bad' news wasn't extremely significant.

"Good news: Bonnie's squad managed to recapture Eisetsu City without casualties."

Ash whistled, impressed. He knew Bonnie was one of the best commanders they had in a while, but even so, to claim Eisetsu without casualties was really a feat.

"Anistar and Coumarine was also retaken, with few casualties."

"The bad?" Ash asked.

"We still couldn't retake Terminus Cave. There's too many Rocket goons there and they have a high ground advantage. What's more, one of our scouts indicate sighting Mia near the area."

Ash cursed under his breath. Rocket Admin Mia Wulfried was a rather formidable opponent. She was thought to have died in the attack one month ago—Ash had seen her been impaled through her head and her chest—but during the cleaning up her body had vanished. Since then, there had been rumoured sightings of a figure that looked like her appearing with Rocket goons, and while Ash had tried to investigate, it had all led nowhere.

"We'll have to deal with this soon. If Mia Wulfried really is alive, we could suffer a lot in the long term." Ash said. "Anything else?"

"Just the peculiar one." Serena pulled out a folded piece of paper from her pocket. "One of our scouts spotted this a few hours ago. He didn't know what it was, and none of our scientists can figure it out."

Ash took the paper from her and unfolded it. There was a photo printed on the paper. It showed the night sky, with a single green streak across it. Ash couldn't make sense of it.

"Where was this taken?"

"Somewhere between Terminus Cave and Eisetsu, though the scout said he forgot which direction it was heading."

Ash thought for a second. It was weird. This phenomenon hadn't occurred before.

"Give it to Professor Sycamore. He might be able to make sense of it." He decided. The professor was a genius and was a major asset amongst the scientists. If even he couldn't decipher this, Ash didn't know who else could.

"Got it." Serena took back the paper and folded it.

Ash lay back against the steps, taking in a deep breath. He felt the exhaustion of countless sleepless nights weighing down against him.

"You look exhausted." Serena sat next to him.

"It's part of my job. Ash Ketchum: rebel leader, perennial sleeper."

Serena giggled. It was a heavenly sound to Ash, like sweet nectar.

"Come on, let's go up. Maybe a walk above ground can help you relax." She suggested, one hand squeezing and massaging his tense shoulder. Ash winced in discomfort.

"See? You're so tense. You need to relax a bit." Serena coaxed.

"Serena, I can't. I've got too much stuff to handle here." Ash tried to argue, but he knew it was a lost cause. The exhaustion in his body, the tightness in his muscles and the aching need to just relax were telling him to just forget his responsibilities for a while and take a break.

"I'm sure the rebellion can survive without you for a night." Serena knew she was winning the battle, so she pressed the advantage.

"But still…"

"Shhhh." She put a finger to his lips. "Just relax. We still have Diantha here to help us, and you've been cooped up in this room for the past 3 hours. You are going straight up and enjoy the outside air for the rest of the night, and that's an order from your leader."

Ash grinned. "We're partners, remember? We're equal." He teased. Inside, he knew Serena was right. He did need to relax.

"True, but I wear the pants in this relationship, so I can order you around."

"Technically, those are blouses and leggings you wear." Ash stood up. "But I can't disobey my Queen now, can I?"

Serena smiled. She stood up as well and embraced Ash.

"Come on, let's go."  
-

Ash had travelled to 6 regions, spent months in them under their morning sun and night sky. But if he had to pick one region with the most beautiful night environment, it would have to be Kalos.

In the day, the world shone with vibrant beauty. Nature had been allowed to rein free in the region and the lush trees and forests glittered in the daylight. Here was one of the few parts of the region untainted by Team Rocket, and it showed.

In the night, however, the air came alive with Vivillion cries and Pokemon wandered freely down in the valley. The night came with a time where the rebels released their Pokemon, often cooped up in the inside of the base for the better part of the day, into the wild to mingle with the native Pokemon and rescued Wild Pokemon. Sometimes, the Pokemon didn't return that night, but they always went back eventually, sometimes with new friends.

Ash and Serena watched all this from the clifftop. A small overhang gave them a clear sight of the luscious valley in all its glory. It was their own secret spot—no one had discovered it yet.

"Come on out, guys!" They released their Pokeballs into the air, and out came their Pokemon partners: Delphox, Pancham, Sylveon and Talonflame from Serena, and Greninja, Alakazam, Sceptile, Charizard and Infernape for Ash. Pikachu leapt from Ash's shoulders to mingle with them, cheering happily as the Pokemon made their way into the valley.

Ash and Serena watched them as a couple would their children going out to play, but without the subconscious worry and protectiveness of a real couple. They sat together on the overhang, watching as Pokemon and some humans mingled and had fun with each other.

"It's so beautiful, isn't it?" Serena asked, and indeed to anyone it was a beautiful sight to behold.

"It definitely is." Ash replied, smiling to himself.

The two watched in blissful silence for a few moments, Serena leaning her head on Ash's shoulder and Ash gently wrapping an arm around her shoulder. Even in the beautiful atmosphere, the love between these two was obvious.

Serena looked up at Ash, "You know, I think we really needed this. Just the two of us, relaxing together, looking out into a nice valley…"

Ash smiled guiltily. He hadn't been spending so much time with Serena the last few days. Sure, they shared the same bed now and they ate together with others, but that was the extent that Ash had been with Serena the last few days.

"Serena, I'm…I'm sorry I hadn't been spending so much time with you. It's just…" Ash started.

"Don't." Serena interrupted, looking him in the eye. "I know. I know what you've been through, and I understand what you need to do. And it's fine with me. It's just that once in a while, I'd just like us to relax and do real couple things like this."

"Well, I promise to do that from now on. Twice every week, we'll come up here and just relax. No work, no job stuff, just sheer unburdened R&R. That OK with you?" He asked sincerely.

Serena looked him dead on, a smile plastered on her face. "That," she leaned in closer, "would be lovely."

In unison, they leaned in and closed the distance between them as their lips collided. It was a simple kiss, filled with love and emotion, and as they broke apart, they both gazed into each other's eyes lovingly.

"I love you Serena."

"I love you Ash Ketchum."

As they looked over the valley again, Ash felt something stir in him. He had known for a long time what it was, but now it came, stronger than ever.

"Serena?"

"Yes, Ash?"

"Do you remember what Diantha asked us during our induction ceremony?"

Serena thought for a moment, before remembering, "Why do we fight? Why do we fight for Kalos?"

"Yeah, that one. Do you remember what I said, back then?"

"Yeah, because we practically said the same thing. To restore Kalos. Why?" Serena asked curiously.

"That was what I said, and back then I truly believed it. I truly believed that was why I was fighting. But a few days ago, Gary asked why I wasn't back in Kanto protecting my home. Why was I fighting for Kalos? And you know what? I couldn't answer."

"But now, I think I know. I'm not just fighting to restore Kalos to its original state."

"What do you mean?"

He looked her dead in the eye. "Just look at the valley. Look at how beautiful it is, how beautiful it looks with Pokemon and humans just relaxing and having fun together. This is the world I believe in, the world where humans and Pokemon can live together, in peace and harmony. This world is cruel, and yet so beautiful, and I intend to keep it that way. I intend to protect Kalos, conserve it, rebuild it to the utopia it was. There's so much worth to protect here: this world, it's people…"

Serena felt tears well in her eyes.

"…and you."

She embraced him, the tears breaking free as they flowed slowly down her cheek. Ash gently raised her chin.

"Will you help me, Serena? Will you help me in this battle?"

Her only response was to kiss him, this man, this man she loved so much since she was a child, the boy she loved that became a man…

She felt his passion, his love, his lust through his kiss, felt his hands roam around her body, every touch igniting her like a torch, and she did the same, hands sliding down his back, his body…

He broke free from the kiss and looked at her with a teasing gleam in his eye.

"Shall we continue this elsewhere?"

Serena could only nod her assent, and mere minutes later, she felt her entire being ignite with passion and pleasure as she yelled his name over and over again, and he yelling hers in turn as well. It was a hot, passionate dance of love, and when they finally stopped, when they finally yelled each other's name in a blazing heat of passion, at that moment when they finally became one, their sweat coated bodies came together in another kiss, another embrace, each affirming their love for the other as they went into a dreamless sleep.

 **Well this chapter, admittedly, is a lot shorter than the others, but I haven't written in a while, so cut me some slack. Next chapter, there will be a bit more action (the main bulk comes in Chapter 3) and I'll be dropping hints as to which legendary I've chosen to add (though if you were paying attention here, you might have picked up on it). I also snuck in an SNK reference in the story, so see if you can pick it up!**

 **Well, that's it for this chapter and I will see you all in the next chapter! Until next time, RWBYSanctum out!**


	8. Author's Note

**Hey guys. So if you haven't really noticed by now, I've been off the grid for quite some time. Well, I put that down to a little something I like to call: EXAMS. Yep, in November, I'll be taking a major exam (like, life-determining major) and I've been focusing on it since July since I'm not in the best shape for it. Because of that, and because it's September, I haven't posted and won't be posting as often.**

 **HOWEVER! Do not fret, for I have some awesome news! After my exams end, I'm basically free till the next year, so what's a guy to do? Well, keep an eye out cause I'm about to announce the mother of all update schedules! Below is the list of stories I'll be releasing, the one-shots planned, and new stories planned!**

 **So here we go!**

 **Current stories**

 **Pokemon: Rise of Evil**

 **Arc 2 Chapter 2: Coordinate Release Date: 26th September**

 **Arc 2 Chapter 3: Siege Release Date: 30th November**

 **Arc 2 Chapter 4: Infiltrate Release Date: 4th December**

 **Arc 2 Finale: Revelations Release Date: 7th December**

 **Arc 3 will continue in February 2017**

 **RWBY Is Strange**

 **Crysalis Part 2: Discovery Release Date: 29th November**

 **Crysalis Part 3: Tension Release Date: 2nd December**

 **Crysalis Part 4: Vision Release Date: 6th December**

 **Crysalis Finale: Ignite Release Date: 8th December**

 **Out of Time (Episode 2) returns January 2017**

 **A Night To Remember (because of popular demand)**

 **Chapter 2 (which will be the FINAL CHAPTER) Release Date: 5th December**

 **On top of this, I'm also gonna be re-writing:**

 **X-Men: Age of Oblivion-I really wanted to finish this story, but lost major interest in it a long time ago. But, because of popular demand, I'll be rewriting it. Expected re-release: February 2017**

 **Remnants of Ourselves-The first chapter didn't go so well, so I'm planning a rethink. Expected re-release: March 2017**

 **And sadly, I'm also sad to announce that I'm cancelling Biting the Dust. Look, guys, I love the story a lot and I wanted to write it the way I wanted to. But I've had so many people throwing in requests (an euphamism) like, "If Blake doesn't turn away from the White Fang in like 2 chapters, I'm quitting this story" or "Could you make Weiss a tsundere (like what the hell is a tsundere anyways?)?" and it's getting on my nerves. I'm not gonna change my story just to suit your whims. I've grown tired of it, so I'm cancelling it.**

 **On a brighter note, I also have some one-shots and two new stories I'll be writing in December, plus a week-long Christmas-New Year special where I'll be writing a story from 24th to 30th December. The planned schedule so far is:**

 **Planned One-Shots**

 **Hollow Feeling (White Rose Angst Fluff) Release Date: 14th December**

 **The Last of Us (Attack on Titan Angst) Release Date: 16th December**

 **The Ties that Bind (Levi x Petra Angst Fluff) Release Date: 18th December**

 **Planned Stories**

 **Titanic Remnant (an AoT RWBY Crossover) Release Date: 20th December**

 **Survive (Amourshipping story) Release Date: 30th December**

 **Christmas Week**

 **24th Dec: Christmas Yeager (Eremika Christmas Special)**

 **25th Dec: Home for the Holidays (Advanceshipping Christmas Special)**

 **26th Dec: Gifts and Gaffs (RWBY Christmas Special)**

 **27th Dec: Day (Franticshipping One-Shot)**

 **28th Dec: I'll be putting up a poll nearer the date for you guys to decide**

 **29th Dec: Ignis Passion (Advanceshhipping One Shot Lemon)**

 **30th Dec: Survive Chapter 1**

 **At this point, you might notice I left a week-long gap in December where I'm not planning any stories. That's deliberate, and for a few reasons:**

 **1) I'll probably be working part-time and so won't have so much time to write**

 **2) I plan to build a relationship with my crush of two years (I haven't confessed yet, but plan to after the exams) and just want to spend some time with her.**

 **3) Pokemon Sun and Moon. Do I need to explain?**

 **4) I kinda want to expand my horizons on the anime side of stuff, plus catch up on a lot of movies, Game of Thrones, Gotham...**

 **5) and most importantly, I'll be working on my first original story (entitled Omega) that I hope to publish one day.**

 **So that's it for now! Hopefully you guys don't rage too hard on me for this, and please be patient! Thank you all, and I'll see you in December! Till the next time, RWBYSanctum out!**


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